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ILLUSTRATED  NOTES 

ox 

ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY. 


VOL.    H. 

ITS      REFORMATION      AND      MODERN     WORK. 

\fe  BY  THE 

REV.    df  ARTHUR     LANK 

Licfxrer  >•/  the   Cliiirc''    D  f  .  nm). 


SK  YEN  TIET:;   THOUSAND. 


PUBLISHED  UNDER  THE  DiUJXlluN    >.•;     !!!K  TRACT  COMMITTEE. 


LONDON: 
SOCIETY    FOK    PROMOTING    CHRISTIAN    KNOWLEDGE, 

NORTHUMBERLAND    AVESUE,  V.c.  :    4^,   QVFEX    VICfORIA    STRSBT.   B.C. 

BRIGHTOX  :    12?:   .N.JUT;   .-THKET. 
KEW    YORK:     E.   &.    J.   c.    YOUXG   i   CO. 


614259 

7  >~ 


COMPANION      VOLUME, 

BT  THE  SAME  AUTHOR. 

300   Pages,    Crown   Octavo,    Cloth  Boards,   Price  One   Shilling. 


ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 
ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY. 

"FROM    THE    EARLIEST    TIMES    TO     THE 
DAWN    OF    THE    REFORMATION" 


NINETIETH     THOUSAND. 


%*  The  two  volumes  traverse  the  whole  range  of  Church  History  in 
Britain.  They  contain  over  two  hundred  illustrations,  including  every 
cathedral  in  England  and  Wales,  and  many  notable  abbeys  and 
churches. 


Printed  by  Hutchings  and  Crowsley  12S,  Fulhurn  Road.s.w. 


PREFACE 

TO   OKIGIXAL  EDITION. 


In  October,  1886.  the  writer  submitted  to  the  public  a  volume 
of  '  Illustrated  Notes  '  on  the  early  history  of  British  Christianity 
the  preface  to  which  contained  a  conditional  promise  of  a  sup- 
plementary series.  The  circulation  of  nearly  forty  thousand  copies  of 
that  volume  was  taken  as  a  proof  that  its  plan  and  price  met  a  felt 
want,  and  the  present  volume  is  the  fulfilment  of  the  pledge. 

It  is  hardly  needful  to  repeat  that  these  '  Notes  '  do  not  claim  to 
be  an  exhaustive  treatment  of  the  subject.  The  main  plan  of  both 
volumes  has  been  to  give  prominence  to  the  concurrent  history  of 
the  Church  and  Realm ;  to  show  that  through  all  ages  they  have 
been  indissolubly  wedded;  and  to  present  the  Church's  ancient, 
mediaeval,  and  modern  history  as  parts  of  one  continuous  whole, 
with  the  Episcopate  for  its  basis.  Upon  this  continuous  thread  of 
general  history  a  number  of  disconnected  ecclesiastical  events  have 
been  strung,  bearing  mainly  upon  questions  recently  raised  bv 
friends  and  foes  alike.  The  history  of  the  Anglican  Church  beyond 
the  seas  is  outside  the  plan  of  this  book,  and  is  therefore  only 
incidentally  treated. 

As  the  price  implies,  these  'Notes'  are  chiefly  intended 
for  Church-folk  of  slender  means ;  and  students  must  not 
regard  them  as  other  than  stepping  stones  to  works  of  higher  merit. 
Apart  from  this  question  of  cheapness  it  may  well  be  doubted 
whether  there  is  any  necessity  for  treating  the  history  of  the  Church 
of  England  anew  ;  especially  as  there  is  nothing  stated  herein  which 
has  not  been  better  said  over  and  over  again.  Indeed  it  would  seem 
that  most  persons  who  deal  with  this  subject  find  it  impossible  to 
say  anything  fresh,  or  to  put  their  thoughts  in  novel  phrases. 
Certainly  the  present  writer  pretends  not  to  any  originality,  either 
in  thought  or  diction,  and  it  is  probable  that  familiar  sentences  may 
be  found  her*  and  there  ;  but  there  is  no  intentional  plagiarism, 


vi  PREFACE. 

The  usual  ancient  authorities,  which  are  everybody's  property,  have 
been  freely  used ;  but  wherever  modern  summaries  have  been  quoted, 
the  source  is  duly  acknowledged,  and  when  known  the  price  and 
publisher's  name  are  added,  so  that  those  who  wish  to  study  the 
matter  further  may  judge  whether  they  can  afford  the  luxury. 
Although  no  new  light  has  been  thrown  upon  a  well-worn  subject  by 
these  pages,  they  may  help  to  diffuse  the  old  light.  Nothing  has 
been  stated  which  has  not  been  generally  accepted  as  true,  or  which 
is  not  useful  to  know  ;  but  the  grouping  of  certain  facts,  as  in  the 
chapter  on  the  dissolution  of  monasteries,  varies  at  times  from  the 
customary  methods  ;  yet  never  without  good  reason. 

These  are  times  when  many  people  adopt  partisan  ideas, 
and  range  themselves  on  one  side  or  another  respecting  every 
great  question  that  arises,  and  look  for  literature  to  suit  their  views. 
Even  strictly  impartial  folk,  if  there  are  such,  prefer  to  read  what 
either  side  may  have  to  say  before  they  draw  their  own  conclusions ; 
and  they  would  probably  consider  a  writer  who  tried  to  set  both  sides 
before  them  with  a  perfect  balance  as  an  insincere  person,  or  one 
who  had  not  come  to  a  determined  mind.  Audi  alteram  partem  is 
the  modern  motto,  which  implies  that  every  assertion  must  be  held 
unproven  until  the  accused  party  has  had  the  floor.  This  book  is 
not  intended  to  satisfy  such  people ;  but  rather  to  show  how  the 
facts  of  history  confute  the  arguments  of  modern  antagonists  of  the 
English  Church.  It  does  not  seek  to  attack  anyone,  but  merely 
attempts  to  restate  certain  truths  which  have  been  obscured  by  time 
or  assailed  and  misrepresented  by  interested  adversaries.  Possibly 
no  two  minds  would  make  the  same  selections  or  draw  the  same 
conclusions  from  the  vast  range  of  history  covered  herein,  and  what- 
ever may  be  said  on  controverted  points  there  are  sure  to  be  some 
who  would  prefer  a  different  view.  That  these  will  question  the 
wisdom  of  the  writer's  selection  of  events  and  persons  is  fully 
expected  ;  and  lest  any  readers  should  feel  aggrieved  because  the 
errors  of  the  Church  of  Rome  are  not  expressly  denounced,  or  that 
insufficient  credit  has  been  given  to  the  conscientious  convictions 
of  Nonconformists,  it  may  be  well  to  state  at  the  outset  that  these 
pages  do  not  profess  to  discuss  opinions  or  theories  on  matters  of 
faith;  but  simply  to  state,  and  occasionally  comment  upon,  such 
ascertained  facts  of  ecclesiastical  history  as  may  help  the  general 
public  to  a  better  understanding  of  what  is  meant  by  the  National 


PREFACE.  vii 

Church.  Any  book  w.hich  shows  how  she  was  defended  in  times  past 
will  help  to  teach  her  sons  and  daughters  how  to  defend  her  now. 
Party  names  which  have  come  to  be  used  as  terms  of  opprobrium, 
are  as  far  as  possible  avoided  in  the  following  pages  ;  and  although 
the  writer  does  not  pretend  to  look  at  matters  from  other  than  a 
Churchman's  standpoint  he  believes  that  he  has  not  dealt  unfairly 
or  inconsiderately  by  those  who  are  opposed  to  the  Church  of  England. 
These  are  grouped  in  his  mind  under  two  heads,  Romanists  and 
Liberationists.  the  latter  being  chiefly  Nonconformists.  When  refer- 
ence is  made  to  their  religious  systems,  it  is  with  a  view  of  shewing 
the  external  position  occupied  by  the  Church  towards  them  in  the 
past,  and  there  is  no  intention  of  implying  unkind  reflections  upon 
modern  adherents  of  Papal  or  Puritan  beliefs. 

Extreme  partisans  within  the  Church  will  find  nothing  here  to 
their  mind.  As  there  is  no  lack  of  common  ground  on  which  our 
differences  may  be  adjusted  there  is  no  need  to  rush  upon  the  keener 
points  of  controversy.  If  the  enemies  of  the  Church  of  England  are 
to  be  successfully  resisted,  all  her  members  must  cease  from  internal 
discords  ;  they  must  stand  steadily  and  harmoniously  together  for 
her  defence : 

"  That  her  fair  form  may  stand  and  shine, 

Make  bright  our  days  and  light  our  dream.*, 
Turning  to  scorn  with  lips  Divine 
The  falsehood  of  extremes." 

In  preparing  the  following  pages  the  writer  has  had  the  very  great 
advantage  of  advice  from  Professor  Burrows  of  Oxford ;  who 
most  kindly  gave  up  much  valuable  time  in  reading  and  commenting 
upon  the  proof  sheets.  He  has  occasionally  differed  with  the  writer 
as  to  the  manner  in  which  several  points  are  treated,  but  has  not 
interfered  with  the  construction  or  arrangement  of  the  work.  The 
responsibility  for  any  imperfections  that  may  be  found  rests  solely 
with  the  writer,  but  he  gratefully  acknowledges  that  they  are  fewer 
than  would  have  been  the  case  without  outside  help.  As  both 
volumes  have  been  compiled  in  time  that  was  justly  at  the  disposal 
of  the  Church  Defence  Institution,  the  writer's  sincere  thanks  are 
due  to  that  Society  for  allowing  him  to  be  free  from  lecturing 
engagements  during:  their  progress  through  the  press. 

r.  1SS8. 


PREFACE. 


PREFACE    TO    FORTIETH    THOUSAND. 


Most  gratefully  does  the  author  acknowledge  the  very  kind  and 
careful  annotations  that  hare  been  made  upon  previous  editions  of 
this  volume  by  many  esteemed  correspondents.  It  is  gratifying  to 
know  that  the  book  has  found  its  way  to  the  remotest  regions  where 
the  Anglican  Church  has  its  outposts,  and,  like  its  predecessor, 
appreciated.  His  thanks  are  also  due  to  numerous  reviewers, 
especially  those  with  party  sympathies,  for  their  criticisms  on  those 
portions  of  the  book  which  have  not  coincided  with  certain  opinions 
current  among  the  schools  of  thought  they  represent.  The  state- 
ments traversed  have  now  been  carefully  revised,  and  in  their  present 
form  must,  for  good  or  ill,  be  taken  as  the  deliberate  convictions  of 
the  writer ;  after  due  consideration  of  the  objections  put  forward  by 
every  critic.  The  issues  dealt  with  in  this  volume  are  much  too 
wide  and  varied  for  the  writer  to  avoid  all  hostile  observations  ;  but 
the  majority  of  reviews  have  been  so  favourable — the  moderate  and 
impartial  organs  unanimously  so,  while  the  extreme  sections  were 
exceedingly  contradictory — that  there  have  been  very  few  changes 
made  b«yond  the  correction  of  typographical  errors  and  the  altera- 
.  tion  of  statistical  tables  from  the  latest  official  data. 

^Epiphany,  1891. 


CHU—  -«MBHW* 

c^^^^^JBBHErPS^ 

RV 


CONTENTS. 

The  Parts  and  Chapters  are  numbered  successively  to  fallow 
those  in  the  earlier  volume  on  Pre- Reformation  Times, 


PART   IV, 

Cburcb  of  England  under  tbe 


CHAPTEK   XVI.  (A.D.  1384—1509). 

THE  ADVENT  OP  THE  TUDOB  DYNASTY. 

PAGE 

Introductory — The  Wars  with  France — Social  Conditions  of 
15th  Century — Wycliffe  and  the  Lollards — Anti-papal 
Statutes — Council  of  Constance — Doctrinal  Abuses — Alien 
Priories — The  Printing  Press — Wars  of  York  and  Lancaster 
— Increasing  need  for  Church  Reform.  ...  1 

CHAPTER   XVII.  (A.D.  1509—1547). 
HEXEY  VIII.  AND  HIS  CMANCELLOES. 

The  Oxford  Reformers — Wolsey's  Scheme  for  Church  Reform — 
The  King's  Divorce — Convocation  and  the  Seven  Years' 
Parliament — The  Royal  Supremacy — Foreign  Influences — 
Translation  of  the  Scriptures — Doctrinal  Reforms — The 
Reactionary  Party  21 


*  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XVIII.  (A.D.  1536-1540). 

DISSOLUTION  OP  THE  MONASTERIES. 

PAGE 

Pre-Norman  and  Post-Norman  Religious  Houses — The  First  Sup- 
pression— The  Pilgrimage  of  Grace — The  Final  Suppression 
— The  King's  Vicar-General — Distribution  of  Monastic 
Estates — Monastic  Churches  made  Cathedral — Monastic 
Churches  made  Collegiate — Monastic  Churches  now  Parochial 
— Educational  and  Charitable  Foundations  ...  .  42 


CHAPTER   XIX.  (A.D.  1547-1558). 
EDWARD  VI.  AND  MARY. 

The  Council  of  Regency — Suppression  of  the  Chantries — The 
Liturgy — The  Edwardian  Bishops — Foreign  Religious  Re- 
formers—  The  Succession  to  the  Throne  —  The  Marian 
Bishops — The  Spanish  Match — Reconciliation  with  Rome — 
The  Marian  Persecutions — The  Exiled  Reformers 61 


CHAPTER  XX.  (A.D.  1558-1603). 
UNDER  THE  VIRGIN  QUEEN. 

Restoration  of  the  Royal  Supremacy — The  Restoration  of  the 
Liturgy — Consecration  of  Archbishop  Parker — The  Articles 
of  Religion— The  Council  of  Trent— The  First  English  Roman 
Catholics — The  First  Puritan  Nonconformists — Mary  Queen 
of  Scots — The  Spanish  Armada— National  Glory — Summary 
of  Part  IV.— Genealogical  T.lU'c  83 


CONTENTS.  xi 

PART  V. 

Ube  Gburcb  of  JEnolanc-  un&ev  tbe  Stuarts. 


CHAPTER   XXI.   (A.D.  16(53-1625). 

THB  GROWTH  OF  PCRITA^TSM. 

PACK 

The  Seventeenth  Century — Scotch  Presbyterianism — The  Hampton 
Court  Conference — The  Gunpowder  Treason  Plot— The 
Authorised  Version — The  Puritans— Abbott  and  Laud — 
Progress  of  Opposing  Principles 105 


CHAPTER   XXII.    (A.D.  1625-1649). 
KIXG  rtrtut  PAKLIAICE>T, 

The  Petition  of  Right — Arbitrary  Civil  Government — Laud's 
Administration — The  Scotch  Liturgy — War  with  Scotland — 
The  Long  Parliament— Outbreak  of  the  Civil  War— The  Long 
Parliament  and  the  Clergy — The  Long  Parliament  and  the 
Bishops — The  Westminster  Assembly — The  '  Independent ' 
Army — Regicide 123 


CHAPTER   XXIII.  (A.D.  1649-1660). 
UNDER  THB  COMMO>"WKALTH. 

Proceedings  of  the  'Rump' — Religious  Anarchy — The  Quakers — 
Worcester  Fight  —  Destruction  of  Churches — Cromwell's 
Parliaments — Sufferings  of  the  Clergy — Sufferings  of  the 
Laity — Royalist  Reaction ...  ...  ...  ...  146 


xii  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XXIV.  (A.D.    1660-1685). 

RESTORATION  OF  CHURCH  AND  REALM. 

PAGE 

The  Return  of  the  King— The  Savoy  Conference— The  Revised 
Liturgy — Repressive  Legislation — The  Great  Plague— The 
Fire  of  London — A  Great  Architect — The  Church  in  Scotland 
— National  Dread  of  Romanism — Popish  Plots — The  Church 
in  Ireland 161 

CHAPTER  XXV.  (A.D.  1685-1691). 
THE  SEVEN  BISHOPS. 

James  II.  and  the  Puritans — .^en-Resistance — The  Declaration  of 
Indulgence — The  Bishops  in  the  Tower — Trial  of  the  Bishops 
— The  Revolution — A  Lost  Cause — "  The  Non-jurors  " — Vacil- 
lating Clergy — Genealogical  Table  179 


PART  VI. 

ZIbe  Gburcb  of  Enalano  since  tbe  Devolution. 


CHAPTER  XXVI.  (A.D.  1688-1714). 
PEACE  AND  POPULARITY. 

The  Protestant  '  Sucession — The  Toleration  Act — Religious 
Societies— The  S.P.C.K.— Church  Work  Abroad— The  S.P.G. 
— The  Scotch  Church  Supplanted — Queen  Anne's  Bounty — 
Impeachment  of  Sacheverell — Popularity  of  the  Church — 
Hardships  of  Nonconformity — Pews  in  Churches  195 

CHAPTER  XXVII.  (A.D.  1714-1830). 
THE  GEORGIAN  ERA. 

The  Silencing  of  Convocation — Calm  in  the  Church — Growth  of 
Infidelity — The  Wesleys — George  Whitfield — Methodism — 
The  Evangelical  Revival — Evangelical  Societies — The 
C.M.S.— Parliamentary  Grants  211 


CONTENTS.  xiii 

CHAPTER  XXVIII.  (A.D.  1778-1888). 

RELIGIOUS  LIBERTY. 

PAGE 

Removal  of  Nonconformist  Disabilities — Encroachments  upon 
Church  Privileges — Removal  of  Romanist  Disabilities — The 
New  Papal  Hierarchy — Removal  of  Jewish  Disabilities — The 
Irish  Church — Removal  of  Atheist  Disabilities — The  Ecclesi- 
astical Commission — Disestablishment — Lawsuits  respecting 
Doctrine  and  Ritual — The  Revival  of  Convocation 231 

CHAPTER  XXIX.  (A.D.  1801-1888). 
MODERN  CHURCH  WORK. 

Missionary  Enterprise — The  Church  Revival — Religious  Edu- 
cation of  the  Young — Church  Restoration — Increase  of  the 
Clergy — Church  Building — Mission  Work  among  the  Poor — 
Finance  249 

CHAPTER  XXX.  (A.D.  1784-1888). 
THE    EXTENSION    OP    THE    EPISCOPATE. 

The  American  Episcopate — The  Colonial  Episcopate — Home 
Diocesan  Changes — The  Diocese  of  Manchester — The 
Diocese  of  Truro — The  Diocese  of  St.  Albans — The  Diocese 
of  Liverpool — The  Diocese  of  Newcastle— The  Diocese  of 
Southwell — The  Diocese  of  Wakefield — Suffragan  Bishops — 
The  Lambeth  Conferences— Conclusion  ..  268 

CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE  287 

GENERAL  INDEX  .  296 


LIST   OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE 

1.  Consecration  of  Archbishop  Parker  (Frontispiece) 

2.  The  Battle  of  Agincourt        -                                                  -  3 

3.  An  Armourer  of  the  15th  Century  -  4 

4.  Portrait  of  John  Wycliffe     •             -                                     -  6 

5.  Lollard  Prison,  Lambeth  Palace       ....  7 

6.  The  Bridge  over  the  S \vift  at  Lutterworfh  -                         -  H 

7.  The  Beauchamp  Chantry,  St.  Mary's,  Warwick       -  -13 

8.  Interior  of  King's  College,  Cambridge         -            -            -15 
9    Caxton's  Printing  Press        -                           ...  17 

10.  Battlefield  Church,  near  Shrewsbury                                       -  19 

11.  Erasmus  in  his  Study                                     -            -            -  22 

12.  Portrait  of  Cardinal  Wolsey             ....  2~> 

13.  Leicester  Abbey  Ruins          -            -            -            -            -  26 

14.  North  Transept  of  Peterboro'  Cathedral       -                         -  28 

15.  Sir  Thomas  More's  House,  Chelsea  (from  old  engraving)     -  32 

16.  Portrait  of  Martin  Luther    -                                       -             -  35 

17.  Reading  the  Bible  in  the  Crypt  of  Old  St.  Paul's  -            -  38 

18.  Portrait  of  King  Henry  VI II            -                         -            -  41 

19.  A  Benedictine  Nun  (after  Dugdale)                          -            -  43 

20.  Ruins  of  Tintern  Abbey       -  45 

21.  A  Carthusian  Monk  (after  Dugdale)                                      -  49 

22.  Portrait  of  Lord  Thomas  Cromwell              -            -            -  51 

23.  Newstead  Abbey  (West  Front)         -            -            -  53 
2 1.  Nave  of  Chester  Cathedral,  looking  east      -                         -  55 

25.  Southwell  Cathedral,  with  Ruins  of  Arch  iepiscopal  Palace  57 

26.  Beverley  Minster  (Exterior)             -                                      -  58 

27.  Tewkesbury  Abbey  (Exterior)          -            -            -            -  59 

28.  Edward  VI.  in  Council                       -            -            -            -  62 

29.  Great  Hall  of  Christ's  Hospital  (Bluecoat  School)  London  -  65 

30.  Portrait  of  Archbishop  Cranmer      -  -  -  -68 

31.  St.  Mary's  Cburch,  Cambridge  (Exterior)  -            -            -  71 

32.  Examination  of  Princess  Elizabeth  by  the  Maiian  Bishops  75 

33.  Portrait  of  Hooper,  Bishop  of  Gloucester    -            -            -  78 

34.  Portraits  of  Latimer  and  Ridley      -            -            -            -  79 


LIST  OF  ILL  USTRA  TWNS.  xv 

PAGE 

35.  The  Martyrs'  Memorial,  Oxford 

36.  Portrait  of  Queen  Elizabeth 

37.  Portrait  of  Archbishop  Parker 

38.  Th«  City  of  Trent  (Panoramic  View)  -  ^ 

39.  Thf  Church  of  Austin  Friars,  London,  B.U 

40.  Tht  Temple  Church.  London,  E.G.  -  •  ' 

41.  Mar v.  Queen  of  Scots  -  '      ~ 

42.  English  and  Spanish  Ships  (1583)  - 

43.  St-atford-on-Avon  Church  - 

44.  Portrait  of  John  Knox 

45.  Kelso  Abbey,  Scotland          -  -  - 

46    Hampton  Court  Palace  in  the  time  of  James  I. 

47.  Gunpowder  Conspirators' House,  Lambeth  i« 

48.  The  Jerusalem  Chamber,  Westminster  «» 

49.  Paritan  Costumes     -  '. 

50.  Portrait  of  Archbishop  Laud  -  - 

51.  Hunpden  House,  Buckinghamshire  |f° 

52.  The  Star  Chamber  ( Interior)  -  ',->." 

53.  St  Giles'  Church,  Edinburgh  (before  restoration)  - 

54.  Bemerton  Church,  near  Salisbury    -  j*Q 

55.  Axe  and  Block 

56.  A  Puritan  Soldier      - 

57.  Carisbrook  Castle      -  -  ' 

58.  Charles  I.  parting  with  his  Children 

59    Puritans  destroying  the  Cheapsidc  Cross     • 

60.  Hereford  Cathedral  (Exterior)        -  -  » 

61    Pontefract  Church,  showing  Ruined  Chancel  •     iw 

62.  Cromwell  dissolving  the  ;  Rump  '  Parliament  IE* 

63.  Portrait  of  Jeremy  Taylor    -  ]59 

64.  John  Evelyn 

65.  The  Savoy  Palace      - 

66.  Elstow  Church,  Bedfordshire  -  l' 

67.  The  Plague  Pits,  Finrfraiy  (1666)   -  - 

68.  The  Fire  of  London,  as  seen  from  bouthwark  "* 

69.  The  Monument,  E.G.  L~ 

70.  The  Palace,  Whitehall,  temp.  James  I. 

71  Richard  Baxter  before  Judge  Jeffries - 

72  Oxford  Cathedral,  from  Merton  Meadows  -  i« 
73!  A  Procession  by  Water  to  the  Tower  of  London                   -     J&o 

75    Portrafts  oUhe'slven  Bishops  (from  an  old  engraving)     -     188 

76.  Magdalen  College,  Oxford   -  -  -  * 

77.  Monument  of  the  Boyne  Battle  •     ^ 

79    OfficesCofUthe  Society"  for  Promoting  Christian  Knowledge      198 

80.  The  Old  East  India  House,  1803      -  -  •"* 

81.  The  Old  Church,  Perth 


xvi  LIST  OF  ILLUSTRA  TIONS. 

PAGE 

82.  St.  Paul's  Cathedral             -  -  £07 

88.  Pulpit  and  Pew  in  the  olden  time   -  -  211 

84.  Stoke  Pogis  Church,  Buckinghamshire 

85.  Portrait  of  Bishop  Butler     - 

86.  Olney  Church,  Buckinghamshire     -            -  -  218 

87.  Epworth  Church,  Lincolnshire         -  -  220 

88.  Portrait  of  John  Wesley       ...  -  224 

89.  Statue  of  William  Wilberforce,  Westminster  Abbey 

90.  City  of  Rome  Chewing  Castle  of  St.  Angelo  -  235 

91.  Armagh  Cathedral  (Interior  of  Choir) 

92.  Houses  of  Parliament,  from  the  Thames     -  -  242 

93.  The  New  Law  Courts,  Fleet  Street 

94.  Bishop  Patteson's  House  and  Chapel           -  -  249 

95.  Portrait  of  Reginald  Heber,  first  Bishop  of  Calcutta  -  251 

96.  Portrait  of  Rev.  John  Keble             -            -            -  -  253 

97.  An  Unrestored  Church  (Haddon  Hall)        -  -  258 

98.  A  recent  Restoration  (St.  Mary,  Aldermary,  E.G.)  -  259 

99.  Arms  of  King's  College,  London      -            -  -  261 

100.  A  Modern  Church  (St.  Jule's,  Kensal  Green)          -  -  262 

101.  A  Mission  Chapel     -  -  265 

102.  Bishop  Seabury's  House,  Springfield,  Conn.,  U.S..4.  -  269 

103.  Bristol  Cathedral  (Exterior)            -  -  272 

104.  Manchester  Cathedral  (Exterior)    -  -  273 

105.  Truro  Cathedral  (from  architect'sdnvwhifr)  .  274 

106.  Liverpool  Pro-Cathedral      -  -  276 

107.  Newcastle  Cathedral  (Exterior)       ....  278 

108.  Wakefield  Cathedral  (Interior  of  Nave)     -  -  280 

109.  Lambeth  Palace,  from  the  River      -            -            .  -  281 


ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON  ENGLISH 
CHURCH  HISTORY. 


PART  IV. 

fltljnrtb   0!    (Bnglantr  nnbtx 


CHAPTER     XVI.    (A.D.   1384-1509.) 
THE  ADVENT  OP  THE  TUDORS. 

"  As  thon  these  ashes,  little  brook !  wilt  bear 
Into  the  Avon,  Avon  to  the  tide 
Of  Severn,  Severn  to  the  narrow  seas, 
Into  main  oce.m  they,  this  deed  accurst 
An  emblem  yields  to  friends  and  enemies 
How  the  bold  teacher's  doctrine,  sanctified 
By  truth,  shall  spread  throughout  the  world  dispersed." 
— Wordroxrrth. 

1.  Introductory. — The  following  pages  are  intended  to  be  read 
in  connexion  with  the  companion  volume  under  the  same  general 
title,  which  dealt  with  the  chief  facts  of  Church  history  in  our 
country  up  to  the  death  of  John  Wycliffe.  The  five  hundred  years 
treated  of  herein  comprise  the  "  Reformation  and  M-.-dt-rn  Work  "  of 
the  very  same  ecclesiastical  society  whose  sources,  consolidation,  and 
growth  are  there  dwelt  upon.  Under  the  term  "  REFORMATION  " 
the  writer  includes  a  vast  number  of  adaptations  and  necessary 
changes  made  in  the  English  Church  daring  some  300  years — from 
the  time  of  Wy cliff e  until  the  Revolution  of  1633 — some  of  greater, 
others  of  less  importance  ;  none  of  them  complete  in  themselves,  or 
such  as  altered  the  ancient  character  and  organisation  of  that 
Church  ;  but  which,  when  judged  of  by  their  results  as  a  whole — as 
a  means  of  comparing  the  Church  of  modern  with  that  of  mediaeval 
Britain — have  made  some  people  think  that  the  present  Church  of 
England  is  a  different  Church  to  that  of  the  olden  time.  We  hope 
to  satisfy  the  reader  that  in  none  of  those  three  hundred  years,  and 
in  EO  specific  reign,  was  the  old  Church  so  altered  in  constitution  or 


3  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

teaching  as  to  destroy  its  identity  ;  or  warrant  the  theory  that  a  new 
Church  was  founded,  at  some  comparatively  recent  date,  by  reason  of 
certain  specific  acts.  Not  only  were  the  changes  made  of  a  very 
gradual  character — though  more  rapidly  successive  at  some  times 
than  at  others — but  the  changes  were  brought  about  from  within  the 
Church  by  her  recognised  representatives  ;  and  amid  all  she  was 
enabled  to  preserve  unimpaired  a  '  silver  line  of  sweet  continuity'  in 
ministry  and  doctrines,  which  has  kept  her  in  communion  and  fellow- 
ship with  the  Apostles  and  with  Christ.  The  word  "  Reformation  " 
is  sometimes  used  to  comprehend  all  the  contemporary  changes  on 
the  Continent  that  resulted  in  the  formation  of  numerous  '  Pro- 
testant '  communities ;  most  of  which  repudiate  the  merit  of 
historical  continuance.  The  space  at  disposal  and  the  extensive 
nature  of  the  subject  demand  the  restriction  of  these  '  Notes '  to 
events  belonging  to  our  own  nation  only  ;  so  that  '  Foreign  Affairs  ' 
will  not  be  referred  to  unless  they  have  a  direct  bearing  on  English 
Church  history.  The  main  object  before  us  is  to  demonstrate  the 
national,  or  patriotic,  character  of  the  Church ;  but  we  shall 
frequently  have  to  allude  also  to  matters  of  faith  and  practice  which 
were  bound  up  with  the  controversies  between  the  parties  and  indi- 
viduals to  whom  the  changes  and  events  are  due.  Our  present 
chapter  deals  with  the  15th  Century — an  '  Era  of  Preparation  '  it  has 
been  called — during  which  the  religious,  social  and  political  forces  of 
the  nation  were  being  fitted  for  the  great  and  important  changes  that 
followed.  It  was  also,  to  a  certain  extent,  an  Era  of  Progress  ; 
during  which  the  relations  between  different  classes  among  the  people 
were  re-adjusted  for  the  benefit  of  the  poorer  sort.  Such  circum- 
stances have  an  indirect  bearing  on  the  question  before  us,  because 
they  affected  the  natural  development  of  religious  questions.  The 
Chroniclers  of  that  Era  were  so  busied  with  the  temporal  struggles  in 
which  England  was  involved  that  they  had  no  inclination  to  study 
spiritual  problems.  What  they  do  tell  us  amounts  to  this  : — that 
many  abuses  had  crept  into  the  Church's  system  ;  into  her  doctrines, 
discipline,  and  the  lives  of  clergy  ;  and  that  a  great  cry  went  up 
from  all  sections  of  the  people  that  her  house  should  be  swept  and 
garnished,  her  decayed  parts  removed.  We  will  consider  first,  but 
briefly,  the  civil  conditions  of  the  time. 

2.  The  Wars  with  France.- From  about  A.D.  1338  to  1453 
there  were  constantly  recurring  wars  with  France.  Our  kings  still 
ruled  over  certain  Continental  provinces,  which  the  French  were 
constantly  endeavouring  to  annex,  and  in  the  preservation  of  which 
the  honour  of  the  realm  was  involved  ;  while  the  staple  trade  of 
the  country  was  threatened  by  the  desire  of  France  to  rule  over 
certain  Flemish  towns  which  bought  our  wool  and  made  our  cloth. 
In  order  to  meet  his  enemies  on  equal  terms,  Edward  III.  claimed  to 
be  the  rightful  king  of  France,  and  his  descendants  continued  to 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY 


3 


style  themselves  BO  until  the  title  was  relinquished  by  George  111. 
The  English  victories  at  Crecy  and  Poictiers  produced  a  temporary 
peace,  but  hostilities  were  renewed  by  Henry  V.  His  campaign  was 
distinguished  by  the  Battle  of  Azincourt  (Oct.  25,  1415)  which  was 
won  by  the  English  against  tremendous  odds,  through  the  brilliant 
conduct  of  the  archers  ;  who  showered  their  arrows  among  the  French 
cavalry  while  the  latter  were  hampered  by  the  soft  ground  caused 
by  heavy  rain  the  night  before.  The  English  followed  up  this  success 
by  making  themselves  masters  of  the  greater  part  of  France.  Sub- 
sequently, the  French  regained  several  provinces  through  the  religious 
enthusiasm  of  Jeanne  d'Arc,  a  peasant  girl  of  Lorraine.  This  girl, 

.through    treachery, 
was  taken  prisoner  by 
the  English  and  burnt 
( as    a    witch    in    the 
Market  Place  of  Rouen 
|(30th    May,   1431). 
From  that    time  the 
English    lost    ground 
in    France.      In    the 
reigns  of  Henry  VIII. 
and  his  children  seve- 
ral   attempts  were 
made  to  regain  it,  but 
the  last  French  pos- 
•i.     Calais,    was 
lost  in  A.D.  1558.    The 
English     Archbishop, 
BATTLE  OF  AzlxcouKT.  Chichele,  took  a  deep 

interest  in  the  earlier  wars,  and  urged  the  king  to  persevere  in 
them.  No  doubt  the  prowess  of  England's  soldiers  made  foreign 
nations,  including  the  papal  states,  fear  to  treat  our  country  with 
impunity  ;  but  any  advantage  so  derived  was  lost  when  the  for- 
tunes of  war  were  reversed.  Yet  the  loss  of  our  French  acquisi- 
tions was  an  indirect  benefit,  because  it  made  men  content  to  put 
home  affairs  in  order. 

3.  Social  Conditions  of  the  15th  Century.— By  the  close 
of  the  14th  century  relations  between  various  classes  had  become 
greatly  changed.  The  Norman  Conquest  had  introduced  the  feudal 
system,  by  which  for  a  time  the  conquered  people  fell  into  an 
inferior  position  under  the  barons  ;  but  they  gradually  recovered 
their  rights,  until  the  commercial  policy  of  Edward  III.,  and  his 
schemes  for  developing  the  resources  of  the  realm,  created  a  middle 
clem  of  persons  who  were  chiefly  engaged  in  manufactures,  trades, 
and  foreign  commerce.  For  tlifs  new  class  and  theii  dependents 
special  Acts  of  Parliament  were  passed  directing  how  each  grade 


4  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES   ON 

should  dress  and  what  they  should  eat.  Such  outward  distinctions 
proclaiming  the  rank  and  estate  of  each  inhabitant,  soon  gave  rise 
to  the  feeling  expressed  by  John  Ball  in  the  couplet — 

"  When  Adam  delved  and  Eve  span 
Who  was  then  the  Gentleman  ?  " 

The  members  of  each  class  then  began  to  combine  for  mutual  pro- 
tection, and  thus  the  leading  companies  of  merchants  became 
incorporated  and  various  handicraft  guilds  founded  ;  which,  by  their 
representative  character,  soon  took  a  leading  part  in  the  direction  of 
affairs.  The  warlike  character  of  the  age  increased  the  wealth  of 
smiths,  armourers,  and  kindred  crafts,  and  the  numerous  apprentices 

and  workmen  engaged  in  such 
trades  assumed  all  the  importance 
that  earning  good  wages  invariably 
brings.  So  wealthy  were  some  of 
the  merchant  companies  that  kinga 
frequently  accepted  their  hospi- 
tality, and  condescended  to  borrow 
money  of  them  on  the  security  of 
their  crown  jewels.  The  growth 
of  middle  classes  necessitated  a 
readjustment  of  relationships  be- 
tween the  various  estates  ;  and  a 
consequent  loss  of  power  on  tha 
Part  °*  *^e  n°bility.  This  did  not 

Air         nniL  take  Place  a11  at  once'  nor  untk 

the  nobility  and  the  villeint  had 

settled  their  differences.  The  villeins  were  what  we  should  now 
call  yeomen,  small  landed  proprietors  and  petty  tenants,  who, 
in  place  of  rent  had  to  render  a  certain  proportion  of  labour  to 
the  great  feudal  landlords.  During  the  periods  of  truce  that 
alternated  with  campaigns  in  France  the  landlords  imposed  fresh 
hardships  on  their  tenants  and  labourers ;  and  when  the  latter  resisted 
they  caused  new  laws  to  be  passed  in  Parliament  of  a  repressive 
character.  This  was  one  cause  of  the  rebellious  led  by  Wat  Tyler 
and  Jack  Cade.  Richard  II.  promised  those  who  took  part  in  the 
first  rebellion  that,  if  they  would  disperse  peaceably,  the  condition 
of  serfdom  should  be  done  away  with,  and  agricultural  labour  paid 
for  according  to  its  market  value.  The  social  status  of  the  middle 
classes  had  been  gradually  improving  ever  since  the  Commons  were 
allowed  representatives  in  Parliament  ;  but  as  labouring  men  were 
not  allowed  to  vote  in  the  election  of  the  people's  representatives, 
and  were  therefore  left  uncared  for,  they  adopted  what  they  thought 
the  best  way  of  airing  their  grievances,  viz. :  a  public  demonstration 
of  ill  armed  and  undrilled  mobs  ;  which  wantonly  destroyed  the 
possessions  of  the  wealthy  until  disciplined  forces  caused  them  to 


E:\GLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY.  6 

disperse.  Some  restrictions  were  placed  upon  the  power  of  the 
kings  also  ;  as  when,  in  the  year  1404,  it  was  agreed  that  they 
should  govern  by  the  advice  of  an  enlarged  Privy  Council;  consisting 
of  six  bishops,  nine  lay  barons,  and  seven  commoners.  The  general 
principles  by  which  this  levelling  of  all  ranks  was  carried  out  were 
closely  identified  with  Lollardism,  a  movement  said  to  have 
originated  through  WyclifEe's  teaching,  but  which  was  quite  aa 
much  political  as  religious. 

4.  Wyoliffe  and  the  Lollards.1 — We  do  not  desire  to  magnify 
the  importance  of  Wyclifle,  but  it  would  be  idle  to  ignore  the  fact 
that  all  through  the  fifteenth  century  hia  teaching  was  held  to  be 
directly  connected  with  the  social  revolutions.  That  is  one  reason 
why  we  have  made  him  the  link  that  joins  these  volumes.  It  is 
not  easy  to  form  a  just  estimate  of  Wycliffe's  opinions,  because 
many  of  his  writings  remain  unpublished.  But  so  far  as  we  can 
judge  he  seems  to  have  taught  that  property  has  duties  as  well  as 
rights  ;  that  unfaithful  clergy  ought  to  be  prevented  from  enjoying 
the  revenues  of  the  Church  ;  and  that  the  government  should  enforce 
the  principle.  Such  an  idea  mightily  pleased  the  nobles,  who  were 
glad  of  a  pretext  for  confiscating  Church  property.  Hence  the 
enmity  against  Wycliffe  on  the  part  of  the  wealthier  ecclesiastics. 
From  other  writings  of  Wycliffe  it  is  clear  that  he  did  not  intend  to 
preach  doctrines  of  revolution  and  confiscation ;  but  rather  to 
explain,  in  the  scholastic  terms  of  his  day,  that  clergy  have  a  duty 
towards  the  laity,  the  due  performance  of  which  laymen  ha\e  a  right 
to  demand.  This  doctrine  was  spread  far  and  wide  by  the  '  poor 
preachers '  Wycliffe  sent  out.  When  the  peasantry  understood  the 
force  of  the  new  teaching  they  applied  it  to  their  own  circumstance* 
by  proclaiming  that  landlords  had  duties  to  perform  towards  the 
poor ;  and  that,  unless  the  nobles  tried  to  ameliorate  the  condition  of 
their  dependents,  their  wealth  also  ought  to  be  confiscated.  When 
the  nobility  found  that  Wycliffe's  teaching,  which  they  had  espoused 
in  order  to  limit  the  power  of  the  ecclesiastics,  could  be  turned 
against  themselves,  they  joined  in  the  chorus  of  disapprobation  that 
had  come  from  the  prelates  and  celibate  orders  ;  and  assented  in 
Parliament  to  laws  proposed  against  the  Lollards,  as  Wycliffe's 
followers  were  called.  But  Lollardism  as  a  religious  movement 
should  be  distinguished  from  political  Lollardy,  which  Wycliffe 
would  have  been  the  first  to  discountenance.  An  appeal  to  the 
Scriptures  was  his  chief  policy.  Any  doctrine  or  rule  of  life  not 
taught  therein  was  discredited  by  him.  Over  and  over  again  he 
taught  Che  duty  of  obedience  to  the  higher  powers,  even  though  the 
rulers  were  evil  men.  But  while  Wycliffe  and  his  "poor  priests" 
must  be  dissociated  from  the  revolutionary  movements  as  such,  it 

1  BM  "  Wiclif  •  PUoe  la  Hutorj,"  by  Professor  Burrow*.— libisir*,  3s  «*". 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


JOHN  WYCLIFFE. 


must    be  admitted  that  his   chief    adherents  were    to    be    fonnd 

among  the  discontented  politicians  ; 
and  that  the  religious  principles  of  the 
Lollards,  among  whom  were  many 

\earnest  men  of  rank  and  high  moral 
\S  character,  included  many  tenets  which 
were    and    are    indefensible,   as   for 
instance  : — their  repudiation  of  epis- 
copacy, their  idea  that  the  unworthi- 
ness    of  ministers  invalidated   their 
official  acts,  and  their  objections  to 
capital    punishment    and    justifiable 
homicide  in  times  of  war.      The  Lol- 
lard movement  flourished  with  varying 
fortunes  all   through   the    loth  cen- 
tury, but  the  chief  points  of  its  history 
can  be  briefly  disposed  of.    In  the  year 
1395  they  petitioned  Parliament  to  aid  them  in  reforming  the  Church, 
Their  petition  contained  a  catalogue  of  their  reasons,  from  which  we 
learn  that  their  most  notable  doctrinal  and  devotional  opinions  were : — 
A  denial  of  Transubstantiation, 

Objection  to  celibacy  among  the  clergy  and  religious  orders, 
The  condemnation  of  clergy  who  held  temporal  offices, 
Repudiation  of  image  worship  as  idolatrous,  and 
Tbe  non-necessity  of  auricular  confession. 

This  petition  exposed  them  to  the  wrath  of  the  higher  clergy,  who 
now  consisted  chiefly  of  men  nominated  by  the  papacy,  which  had 
made  these  controverted  doctrines  essential  matters  of  belief. 
Accordingly,  in  January,  1401,  the  Lollards  were  condemned  by  Con- 
vocation;1 and  Parliament  was  persuaded  to  pass  the  infamous 
statute,  De  Ileretico  Comburendo,  by  which  the  civil  authority 
became  the  executioner  of  those  whom  the  prelates  condemned.  In 
February,  HOI,  William  Sawtry,  a  rector  in  the  city  of  London, 
was  declared  heretical  by  Convocation,  degraded  from  his  office, 
handed  over  to  the  secular  arm,  and  burnt  at  Smithficld.  He  was  one 
of  the  first  to  suffer  death  in  this  country  respecting  matters  of  faith 
since  the  days  of  the  emperor  Diocletian.  It  was  a  deeply-laid  plan 
on  the  part  of  the  Romanizing  clergy  to  associate  their  religious 
opponents  with  disturbers  of  the  public  peace  ;  otherwise  they  could 
not  have  procured  the  passing  of  so  cruel  an  act,  by  which  the 
statute  book  was  disfigured  for  more  than  250  years.  For  a  time 
the  burning  of  Sawtry  frightened  the  Lollards;  but  in  1409  Con- 
Tocation  found  it  necessary  to  forbid  the  reading  of  Wycliffe's 

1  Convocation  is  the  legislative  assembly  of  the  Church,  as  Parliament  is  for  th« 
civil  authority,  and  even  in  the  most  despotic  times  no  cliauge  was  made  in  Church 
doctrinei  or  discipline  without  its  prior  consent.  (See  also  page  73.) 


E.\'OLISH    CHCRCH    HISTORY 


writings  or  translations  of  the  Scriptures.  In  spite  of  these  repres- 
sive measures  the  new  opinions  spread  ;  and  even  Parliament  made 
use  of  them  freely,  in  directions  which  the  author  would  have  been 
the  first  to  condemn.  In  1404,  and  again  in  1410,  the  Commons 
carried  to  extremes  the  dogma  of  Wycliffe  which  taught  that  the 
civil  power  ought  to  see  Church  revenues  rightly  and  worthily 
dispensed  ;  for  on  the  plea  of  present  misappropriation  they  boldly 
proposed  to  confiscate  the  whole  of  Church  property  for  the  support 
of  the  king's  military  enterprises.  The  Commons  also  accepted  in 
spirit  the  Lollard  notion  that  the  clergy  were  too  powerful,  by 
seeking  in  every  way  to  restrict  their  power.  It  had  been  the  prac- 
tice for  tho  cl'T  '\-  to  arrest  in  their  own  name  and  confine  in  their 


PKISOX   IN"   LAMBETH   PALACE 


own  prisons,  all  persons  whom  they  suspected  of  heresy  ;  and  it  haa 
been  said  that  the  prison  in  the  Water  Tower  of  Lambeth  Palace 
waa  used  for  their  detention.  The  Commons  wished  that  such 
suspects  should  be  arrested  on  the  king's  writ  only,  and  confined 
nowhere  but  in  the  civil  prisons.  In  these  attempts  the  Commons 
were  not  successful,  and  Convocation  redoubled  its  efforts  to  repress 
the  Lollards.  In  return  for  the  interest  taken  by  Archbishop  Chichele 
in  furthering  the  expeditions  to  France  that  obtained  *he  victory  of 
Azincourt,  an  Act  was  passed  (1414)  by  which  all  sheriffs  and 
municipal  officers  were  compelled  to  help  the  bishops  represi 
,  by  Laforraing  agaias;  and  apprehending  suspects  ;  wijoni 


f  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

they  were  to  deliver  op  to  the  custody  of  the  bishops'  jailors.  The 
first  layman  of  note  to  suffer  death  for  Lol  lardy  was  Sir  John 
Oldcastle,  but  his  offence  was  chiefly  political.  He  was  first 
hanged  for  high  treason  (1417)  and  then  burnt  aa  an  'heretic.' 
We  shall  see  presently  how  important  the  new  opinions  were  con- 
sidered in  other  countries.  It  is  sufficient  here  to  say  that  in  spite  of 
all  attempts  to  suppress  them  in  England,  which  appeared  out- 
wardly successful,  they  were  still  secretly  cherished  and  propagated  ; 
and  that  although  every  effort  was  made  to  destroy  Wycliffe's  books 
a  number  have  been  preserved  in  manuscript  to  the  present  time.  In 
1449  the  Commons  made  a  further  attempt  to  control  clerical 
revenues  by  proposing  to  tax  the  clergy.  Hitherto  the  clergy  had 
determined  of  themselves,  in  Convocation,  how  much  they  should 
contribute  towards  the  public  burdens  ;  '  instead  of  being  taxed  in 
the  same  way  as  laymen.  The  king  referred  that  desire  of  Parlia- 
ment to  the  Convocation,  and  the  latter,  while  theoretically  retain- 
ing its  ancient  privilege,  agreed  to  follow  the  example  of  Parliament 
in  the  proportion  of  their  grants  ;  and  this  practice  continued  until 
,  since  which  date  the  clergy  have  been  taxed  like  other  people. 


6.  Anti-Papal  Statutes.  —  In  our  first  volume  we  endeavoured 
to  shew  that  after  the  10th  century  Church  and  Realm  were  con- 
vertible terms  for  the  same  community,  because  all  the  members 
forming  the  nation  belong  theoretically  to  both  ;  and  that  any 
attempt  on  the  part  of  foreigners  to  interfere  in  either,  was  justly 
considered  an  infringement  of  National  rights.  To  ignore  the  con- 
tinued protests  of  Christian  England  against  the  usurped  jurisdiction 
and  doctrinal  errors  of  the  Church  of  Rome  during  the  mediaeval 
times,  would  be  to  parody  the  history  of  our  country.  It  is  true 
that  England  did  not  very  vigorously  resist  papal  encroachments, 
after  the  reign  of  Edward  III.,  because  the  civil  troubles  kept  the 
kings  and  nobles  fully  occupied.  Still  every  now  and  then  Acts 
appeared  upon  the  statute  book,  which  prove  that  the  land  was  by 
no  means  prepared  to  surrender  its  ancient  independence  in  religious 
affairs.  The  old  Statute  of  Providers?  passed  in  1351,  had  not  been 
very  strictly  carried  out,  and  it  was  found  needful  to  pass  a 
still  more  stringent  Act,  in  1390,  to  present  the  bishops  of  Home 
nominating  persons  to  fill  English  benefices  when  vacancies  should 
arise.  In  the  year  1393  the  usurped  jurisdiction,  of  the  Pope  was 
attacked  still  more  effectively  by  a  very  strung  defensive  measure 
enforcing  the  earlier  Statutes  of  Prcemunire.  Under  this  Act 
appellants  toj  Rome,  and  officials  of  the  papal  court  who  landed  in 
this  "country,  could  be  severely  punished  and  outlawed  ;  their  goods 
being  confiscated  to  the  State.  Bishop  Stubbs  says  that  this  statute 
is  '  the  clue  of  the  events  that  connect  the  Constitutions  of  Clarendon 

\  See  vol.'I,  p.  221.  2  See  vol.  I,  p.  229. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY. 

with  the  Reformation.'  Again,  iu  13yy,  when  Kichard  II.  wai 
deposed,  it  was  charged  against  him  that  he  had  asked  the  Pope  to 
confirm  his  sets;  'whereas,'  so  Parliament  then  declared,  'the 
kingdom  of  England  and  the  rights  of  its  crown  had  always  been 
so  free  that  neither  the  pope  nor  any  other  outside  the  kingdom 
might  interfere  therein.'  This  is  the  key-note  of  all  subsequent 
anti- papal  legislation.  In  spite  of  these  acts  Pope  Martin  V.  succeeded 
in  placing  thirteen  of  his  own  nominees  in  English  bishoprics  during 
the  years  14 17-1 8,  and  even  appointed  his  nephew,  a  boy  of  14  years  old, 
to  the  archdeaconry  of  Canterbury.  The  evil  grew  so  rapidly  that 
an  embassy  was  sent  to  Martin  V.  to  make  him  acquainted  with 
English  law  ;  whereupon  the  pope  commanded  the  archbishops  of 
Canterbury  and  York  that  they  should  disregard  the  famous  statutes 
referred  to.  Ch>chele  was  archbishop  of  Canterbury  at  the  time, 
and  he  meekly  excused  himself  on  the  ground  that  no  other  English 
bishop  would  allow  foreigners  to  be  promoted.  Indeed,  there  was  a 
special  statute  (1  Hen.  V.,  c.  7*)  forbidding  foreigners  to  accept 
English  benefices.  Martin  V.  rejoined  with  a  long  series  of  threats 
if  Chichele  would  not  try  to  procure  the  abolition  of  the  statutes. 
He  wrote  in  a  similar  strain  to  the  king  and  Parliament,  demand- 
ing the  repeal  of  the  Statute  of  Preemnnire.  But  the  statutes 
remained  untouched  all  through  the  reign  of  Henry  V.  Some  years 
late/,  and  during  the  minority  of  Henry  VI.,  Pope  Martin  again 
endeavoured  to  procure  their  repeal.  This  time  he  so  terrorised  the 
English  prelates  that  they  went  in  a  body  to  Parliament,  and  asked 
that  his  request  might  be  granted.  But  the  Commons  retorted  by  a 
petition  to  the  Crown  that  English  ecclesiastical  liberty  might  be 
maintained  against  the  encroachments  of  the  pope.  Angered 
exceedingly  by  such  resistance.  Martin  V.  proceeded  to  more 
extreme  measures.  He  issued  bulls1  suspending  Archbishop  Chichele 
and  excommunicating  all  the  English  Bishops.  This  high-handed 
proceeding  was  promptly  withstood.  As  soon  as  the  documents 
arrived  in  England  they  were  seized  by  the  Lord  Protector  and 
destroyed  unopened  ;  and  Archbishop  Chichele  appealed  to  a  General 
Council  of  the  whole  Church  against  the  pope's  action.  This 
occurred  in  1426.  Martin  V.  was  succeeded  by  Engenius  IV.,  who, 
in  143$.  proceeded  to  a  still  more  unprecedented  invasion  of  English 
Church  liberties,  by  giving  the  bishopric  of  Ely  to  the  archbishop 
of  Rouen  ;  that  he  might  hold  that  see  along  with  his  archbishopric 
without  residing  in  England  at  all.  As  the  prelates  in  Convocation 
were  unanimous  in  their  i::dicrnant  repudiation  of  this  flagrant  act, a 
compromise  was  effected  ;  which  did  not,  however,  prevent  the 
revenues  of  the  see  from  being  collected  and  sent  out  of  the  country 
to  the  archbishop  of  Rouen.  So  conscious  was  Parliament  of  the 
importance  to  the  country  of  royal  supremacy  that  an  attempt  was 

1  Bulls  were  papal  decrees,  so  culled  fir>ui  the  bulla,  or  seal  attached  to  them. 


10  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES   ON 

made  while  Chichele  was  primate  to  bring  the  English  ecclesiastical 
Courts  within  the  provision  of  the  Prccmuturt  biutiue  ;  but  he 
was  able  to  preserve  their  independence  by  explaining  to  the  satis- 
faction of  the  king  that  it  was  only  the  papal  courts  of  appeal 
beyond  the  sea  which  were  aimed  at  therein.  This  episode  is  useful 
as  showing  that  the  English  archbishop  (A..D.  1441)  perfectly  uuder- 
stood  the  traditions  of  his  primacy.  Resistance  to  the  papal  decrees 
does  not  in  itself  prove  that  the  Church  of  England  did  not  belong 
to  the  Church  of  Home,  any  more  than  political  agitation  in  our  own 
day  against  laws  which  are  thought  to  be  oppressive  allows  us  to 
suppose  that  the  agitators  have  no  part  or  membership  with  the 
nation.  It  is  the  character  of  the  resistance  that  has  to  be  con- 
sidered ;  and  the  sum  and  substance  of  all  opposition  to  papal  claims 
from  the  English  Church  and  Realm  may  be  expressed  in  the  single 
phrase,  '  You  have  no  jurisdiction  here  I  ' 

6.  The  Council  of  Constance. — Meanwhile  certain  events  of 
importance  had  been  taking  place  abroad,  in  which  the  English 
Church  was  more  or  less  connected.  We  noticed  in  VoL  I.  (page  233) 
that  Wycliffe  took  occasion  to  expose  the  scandal  of  rival  popes. 
This  was  felt  to  be  a  great  danger  to  Christianity  throughout  Europe  ; 
and  a  Council  was  held  at  Pisa  to  heal  the  divisions  that  were  being 
caused  thereby.  This  Council  deposed  both  the  rivals  (A.D.  1409) 
and  elected  a  new  pope.  Those  whom  the  Council  had  condemned 
declined  to  accept  its  decision  by  retiring  ;  so  that  three  rival  popes 
were  in  the  field,  each  claiming  absolute  infallibility,  who  spent 
their  time  chiefly  in  excommunicating  the  adherents  of  the  other 
two.  This  state  of  things  was  not  likely  to  cause  increased  respect 
for  papal  claims  in  England.  A  more  successful  attempt  to  heal  the 
schism  was  made  at  a  later  Council  held  at  Constance  in  the  yeai 
1414,  which  continued  its  sessions  until  1418.  It  settled  the  dilemma 
by  deposing  all  three  rivals,  and  electing  instead  the  above-mentioned 
Martin  V.  This  Council  of  Constance  was  convened  in  response  to  a 
general  desire  throughout  Europe  that  the  Church  of  which  the 
papacy  was  the  acknowledged  chief  should  be  reformed,  in  head  and 
members,  by  remedying  abuses  and  condemning  theological  errors. 
Its  deliberations  help  us  to  understand  how  widely  the  writings  of 
Wycliffe  had  spread  by  that  time.  While  Anne  of  Bohemia  was 
queen  of  England  several  of  her  countrymen  were  educated  at 
Oxford.  Through  them  Wycliffe's  books  had  been  introduced  to  the 
University  of  Prague,  where  they  were  eagerly  studied  by  two 
remarkable  men,  Jerome  and  John  Huxs,  who,  having  accepted 
WyoliSe's  opinions,  preached  them  far  and  wide.  IIuss  was  the  most 
popular  preacher  in  Bohemia,  and  his  influence  over  the  minds  of  the 
worst  of  men  was  very  great.  He  condemned  unsparingly  the  false 
doctrines  of  his  time,  and  ceased  not  to  teach  and  preach  against 
them.  When  it  becawe  known  thai  his  opinions  were  chiefly  drawn 


EXGLfSH    CHURCH   HISTORY. 


11 


from  the  condemned  writings  of  Wycliffe,  his  enemies  among  the 
Bohemian  clergy  caused  him  to  be  cited  before  the  prelates  assembled 
at  Constance.  After  long  discussions  that  Council  also  condemned 
both  \Vycliffe  and  his  writings  ;  and  having  declared  Huss  to  be 
heretical,  delivered  him  over  to  the  secular  power  to  be  burnt.1 
This  was  in  1415.  and  in  the  following  year  Jerome  of  Prague  wa> 
made  to  suffer  in  like  manner.  The  Council  of  Constance  is  notable 
also  for  its  decree  that  popes  are  inferior  and  subject  to  General 
Councils — hence  the  appeal  of  Archbishop  Chichele  mentioned  above. 
This  decree  was  confirmed  by  the  Council  of  Bade  (A.D.  1431-1449), 
which  even  went  so  far  as  to  pronounce  sentence  of  contumacy 
against  Pope  Eugenius  IV.,  for  not  appearing  in  answer  to  its 


THE   BK1DUE    OVEB   THB   SWIFT,  LUTTEBWOKTH  (tee  HCXt  pugt), 

citation  ;  and  when  that  pontiff  convoked  a  counter-assembly  at 
Florence  (1439)  to  maintain  the  ultramontane  idea  that  popes  are 
superior  to  Councils,  the  prelates  at  Basle  deposed  him  from  the 
papacy  and  elected  another  in  hia  room.  It  is  quite  clear,  therefore, 
that  England  was  not  alone  in  ita  determination  to  resist  papal 
aggrandisement.  The  above  Councils  were  fairly  representative  of 
Western  Christendom,  but  the  Eastern  branch  of  the  Church  held 

1  8w  Wratlslaw1!  life  of  John  Huss,  S.P.OK.  Home  Library,  1».  W. 


12  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES 

aloof  ;  and  therefore  they  cannot  have  the  authority  belonging  to 
General  Councils,  properly  so  called,  which  should  represent  the 
Church  throughout  the  world.  The  English  Church  sent  repre- 
sentatives to  them,  and  on  account  of  the  decision  arrived  at  by  the 
Council  of  Constance  touching  Wycliffe  and  his  writings,  a  senseless 
act  of  undignified  vengeance  was  done  to  his  remains.  In  the  year 
1428,  after  he  had  been  dead  and  buried  43  years,  Wycliffe's  bones 
were  taken  from  their  grave  and  publicly  burnt.  The  ashes  were 
then  thrown  into  the  river  Swift  that  runs  below  the  town  of 
Lutterworth.  The  Swift  flows  into  the  Avon,  thence  to  the  Severn, 
aud  onwards  to  the  sea  ;  and  although  the  authors  of  this  outrage 
supposed  that  they  were  annihilating  both  the  man  and  his  doctrines, 
they  did  but  add  to  his  renown.  His  admirers  have  ever  since  looked 
upon  the  distribution  of  his  ashes  as  emblematic  of  his  teaching; 
which,  in  spite  of  modern  efforts  to  minimise  it,  pointed  out  the  way  for 
subsequent  reforms  in  the  Church,  both  in  England  and  on  the  Con- 
tinent. The  permanence  of  Wycliffe's  teaching  and  influence  during 
the  15th  century  has  been  abundantly  proved.  In  1476  Edsvard  IV. 
ordered  the  University  of  Oxford  to  search  for  and  burn  all  his 
books  that  could  be  found  ;  and  yet  Z/eland,  who  wrote  150  years 
after  Wycliffe's  death,  declared  that  his  writings  were  still  studied 
throughout  Germany  and  Britain,1  while  a  merehant  named  Hunn 
was  charged  in  1516  with  all  the  '  heresy'  in  Wycliffe's  preface  to  his 
translation  of  the  Bible,  because  a  copy  was  found  in  his  possession. 
We  must  now  briefly  glance  at  the  doctrinal  and  devotional  abuses 
which  necessitated  such  informs. 

7.  Doctrinal  Abuses. — One  chief  reason  for  which  the  Lollards 
were  declared  heretical  and  burnt  was  their  denial  of  the  doctrine 
called  Transubstantiation  (see  Vol.  1,  page  154),  for  which  there  is 
no  authority  in  Scripture,  nor  in  the  practice  of  the  primitive 
Church.  No  definite  expression  or  decree  can  be  found  about  it  in 
the  canons  of  the  Catholic  Councils  ;  but  after  the  Norman  Conquest 
several  Western  synods  and  local  councils  assented  to  it,  and  by  the 
14th  century  it  was  very  generally  taught.  Unless,  therefore,  the 
Lollards  were  willing  to  believe  a  doctrine  so  unreasonable  and 
repellent  as  that  the  elements  of  bread  and  wine  no  longer  remained 
after  their  Consecration  in  the  Holy  Eucharist,  although  they  were 
plainly  seen,  the  'heretic 'was  adjudged  guilty  of  death.  Bishop 
J?rt/inald  Prcock,  by  no  means  a  friend  to  the  Lollards,  was 
sufficiently  in  advance  of  his  episcopal  brethren  to  declare2  (1456) 

1  See  Pennington's  Life  of  Wycliffe,  S.P.C.K.,  3i. 

1  A  curious  instance  of  the  confused  opinions  of  the  English  Episcopate  is  seen  tat 
the  fact  that  the  temperate  statements  of  Pecock  caused  him  to  be  deposed  by  hU 
fellow-bishops  from  his  see  of  Chichester  ;  and  when  he  appealed  successfully  to  th« 
Bishop  of  Rome  for  reinstatement,  th*  other  English  prelates,  themmlTM 
nominated  by  the  popes,  prosecuted  him  undtr  the  Statute  •/  Provuert  I 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY. 


IS 


that  'the  cleigy  shall  be  condemned  at  the  last  day  if  by  clear  icit 
they  draw  not  men  into  consent  of  true  faith  otherwise  than  by  fire 
and  sword  and  hangment.'  A  further  error  of  the  time  in  respect 
of  Holy  Communion  was  a  belief  that  the  whole  Body  of  Christ, 
Flesh  a'nd  Blood,  existed  in  the  element  of  bread,  so  that  communion 
in  both  kinds  was  declared  unnecessary ;  and  therefore  the  chalice 
was  withheld  from  tie  laity.  This  practice  did  not  become  general 
in  England  until  after  a  decree  made  by  the  Council  of  Constance. 
Transubstantiation  overthrows  the  nature  of  the  Sacrament  by 
destroying  its  outward  and  visible  signs.  The  15th  century  'was  an 
unquiet,  unintellectual  age,  and  men  had  been  content  to  accept 
with  undoubting  faith  theories  which  were  put  before  them  undei 


THE   BEAUCHAMP   CHAXTBY,   ST.   MAEY'S.  WAIiWICK. 


the  reputed  sanction  of  authorities  whom  they  had  been  taught  to 
reverence,  without  enquiring  wbether  the  authority  itself  was  really 
trustworthy,  or  whether  the  claim  to  authority  could  be  proved' 
{Blunt).  Erroneous  ideas  had  grown  up  respecting  the  condition  of 
the  departed  through  exaggerations  of  the  primitive  belief  in  the 
progressive  amelioration  of  souls  after  death.  The  mediaevalists  ven- 
tured to  dogmatize  on  what  was  previously  felt  to  be  very  uncertain  ; 
and  declared  authoritatively  that  the  purification  of  departed  souls 
was  through  a  material  fire.  This  doctrine  is  called  Purgatory.  The 
avarice  of  the  clergy  led  them  to  describe  in  horrifying  terms, 


14  ILLUSTRATED    VOTES    ON 

and  paint  in  vivid  frescoes  on  church  walls  the  torments  of  lost 
souls  ;  and  then  declare  that  by  paying  for  the  chanting  of  a  given 
number  of  Masses,1  living  friends  might  lessen  or  end  the  suffer- 
ings of  departed  loved  ones,  no  matter  how  sinful  they  had  been. 
We  cannot  travel  through  England  to  view  the  '^ancient  churches, 
without  remarking  the  very  large  number  of  Chantry  Chapels  that 
came  into  existence  in  the  14th  and  15th  centuries.  Chantries  were 
usually  small  portions  of  churches  in  which  wealthy  people  had  set 
up  and  endowed  additional  altars,  at  which  masses  in  propitiation 
for  the  sins  of  the  departed  were  sung,  independently  of  the  ordinary 
Eucharist  celebrated  by  the  parish  priest  at  the  high  altar.  Sometimes 
the  tomb  of  the  dead  person  placed  within  the  church  formed  the 
altar,  but  a  separate  aisle  and  transept,  or  an  eastern  chapel,  was 
often  added  to  an  existing  church  for  this  purpose,  which  would  be 
named  after  the  donor,  or  his  favourite  saint.  Hence  the  number  of 
family  chapels,  filled  with  ancestral  monuments,  like  the  Bcauchamp 
Chantry  on  previous  page,  that  we  so  often  meet  with  in  old  churches. 
In  the  early  Church  it  was  customary  for  the  Holy  Communion  to 
form  part  of  the  service  for  the  burial  of  the  dead,  in  order  that  the 
mourners  might  express  their  belief  in  the  Communion  of  Saints, 
living  or  departed.  The  mediaeval  error  consisted  in  changing  what 
was  intended  to  comfort  and  benefit  the  living  into  a  propitiatory 
sacrifice  for  the  dead.2  There  is  reason  to  suppose  that  many  parochial 
clergy,  who  had  been  impoverished  through  the  alienation  of  tithes 
to  the  monasteries,  availed  themselves  of  the  additional  means  of 
livelihood  thus  opened  out  to  them  ;  for  those  who  died  in  the  15th 
century  wars  often  left  benefactions  for  the  purpose.  Closely 
connected  with  the  exaggerated  priestly  power  involved  in  the 
asserted  efficacy  of  masses  for  the  dead,  was  the  travesty  made  of 
the  doctrine  of  Absolution.  From  the  beginning  it  had  been  the 
faith  of  the  Church  that  '  God  hath  given  power  and  command- 
ment to  his  ministers,  to  declare  and  pronounce  to  His  people  being 
penitent,  the  Absolution  and  Remission  of  their  sins;'  but  since 
the  time  of  the  Crusades  Popes  had  granted  '  Indulgences' through 
the  clergy  to  such  aa  could  afford  them  ;  by  which,  on  payment 
of  money  or  taking  part  in  papal  enterprises,  the  outward  signs  of 
Christian  penitence  were  excused.  In  the  early  days  of  Christianity, 
if  a  repentant  sinner  desired  absolution  the  Church  required  him  to 
prove  his  penitence  by  making  restitution  for  his, sin  where  possible, 
or  by  undergoing  some  personal  mortification  before  the  world.  By 

1  The  word  Mass  as  applied  to  the  service  of  Holy  Communion  is  derived  from  a 
Latm  worn  ntu>a  ("  Itu,  uiissa  eat")  used  in  concluding  the  service  ;  and  the  book 
containing  the  form  of  service,  for  the  same  reason,  is  called  the  Mitsui.    The  term 
'  mass '  has  been  wisely  discontinued  by  our  Churck  since   its  repudiation  of  the 
abuses  of  medievalists.    The  Greek  equivalent  "  Liturgy,''  is  far  preferable. 

2  For  a  fourth  century  statement  on  the  primitive  docirine  of  prayers  for  the 
dead,  see  Enchiridion  of  St.  Augustine,  of  Hippo,  chap.  ex. 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY. 


II 


the  novel  idea  of  Indulgence*  he  could  purchase  remission  of  his 
penance,  and  be  set  free  from  all  these  inconveniences. 
Sholv  practice  increased  to  such  a  degree  that  full  £***«»* 
be  purchased,  even  for  sins  that  were  intended  to  be  committed  as 
well  as  for  the  foulest  crimes  already  done  ;  and  in  order  that  tne 
Tlertv  should  reap  the  full  benefit  from  this  source  of  gain,  con- 
Sn  o rin  to  a  priest  was  made  an  absolute  necessity  or  all  at 
stated  periods.  Such  a  parody  of  religion  could  not  fail  to  excue 
indignation  and  distrust;  and  cry  a  ond  te  ref  orm; atio a.  Toe 
impfous  trade  in  Indulgences  reached  its  ^eight  during  the  papacy 
of  Alexander  VI.  and  Leo  X.,  who  caused  them  to  be  P^Ucly  sold 
at  fixed  rates  throughout  Europe,  on  the  plea  that  money  was 
required  to  build  the  famous  Cnurch  of  St.  Peter  a,  at  Rome. 

8.  Alien  Priories.— Althoagh_the 
take    cognisance    of 
any  purely  spiritual 
questions,  there  were 
a  number  of  constitu- 
tional abuses  in  the 
old  monastic  system 
which  violated    the 
law  and  so  properly 
came  within  the  j  uris- 
diction  of  the  king. 
The   Alien   Priories 
came  under  this  head. 
A  priory  was  usually 
a  religious  house  de- 
pendent upon  one  of 
the   greater  abbeys; 
although  there  were 
some      independent 
.religious    houses    of 
which  the  chief  was 
called    a     prior    or 
prioress.     The  'alien 
priories  '    were    de- 
pendent upon  foreign 
monasteries.       They 
grew  up  as  the  re- 
sult of  the  Norman 
Conquest,  when  the 
newnobility,desiring 
to  benefit  French  or 
Norman   Abbeys  in 
which  they  were  in- 


CuLLLUt   CllAl't 


GE. 


16 

ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

terested,  made  over  to  them  English  estates,  and  the  revenues  of 
churches  in  their  patronage.  Much  English  money  was  sent  abroad 
in  this  way  without  any  return  being  made  ;  for  the  foreign  abbeys 
made  no  provision  for  the  district  which  benefited  them  save  placing 
a  few  dependent  monks  on  the  property  to  look  after  the  estate  and 
remit  the  profits.  When  the  French  wars  were  in  progress,  the  enormity 
of  this  system  became  more  than  ever  apparent,  because  the  revenues 
of  the  English  priories  were  enriching  those  with  whom  our  country 
was  at  war.  Therefore,  when  the  Commons  desired  to  confiscate  the 
property  of  the  English  clergy,  Archbishop  Chichele  suggested  instead 
that  the  alien  priories  should  be  suppressed.  Several  had  been 
seized  by  Edward  III.,  which  formed  a  precedent,  and  the  rest  were 
dissolved  by  Act  of  Parliament  in  1414  and  their  revenues  granted 
to  the  king.  It  would  have  been  impolitic  to  entirely  alienate  their 
possessions  from  religious  purposes,  and  therefore,  about  A.D.  1440, 
Henry  VI.  founded  Eton  College  for  boys  and  King's  College  at 
Cambridge,  his  Queen  at  the  same  time  giving  her  name  to  Queen's 
College  in  the  same  university.  The  rapid  increase  in  the  number 
of  educational  foundations  during  the  15th  century  was  due  to  the 
growing  demand  for  knowledge.  Men  were  beginning  to  understand 
that  "the  pen  is  mightier  than  the  sword,"  and  that  it  would  not  do 
for  laymen  to  ignore  the  advantages  of  education.  Archbishop 
Chichele  himself  founded  a  college  at  Oxford,  A.D.  1437,  calling  it 
All  Souls,  to  commemorate  those  who  had  been  killed  in  the  French 
wars;  and  Bishop  Waynjletetoi  Winchester,  that  of  Magdalen, Oxford, 
twenty-one  years  later.  These  episcopal  foundations  were  supported 
chiefly  from  the  revenues  of  monasteries  within  the  jurisdiction  of 
those  prelates  which  they  had  suppressed.  As  the  celibate  system 
was  no  longer  popular,  through  the  indiscretions  of  its  members, 
benevolent  persons  who  might  otherwise  have  built  monasteries 
expended  their  charity  in  founding  chantries,  schools  and  colleges. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  16th  century  Bishop  Foxe  of  Winchester 
desired  to  found  a  monastery,  but  was  dissuaded  from  the  idea 
by  Bishop  Oldham  of  Exeter,  on  the  ground  that  conventual 
establishments  had  ceased  to  be  good  and  useful,  and  must  soon 
pass  away.  These  two  bishops  founded  instead  Corpus  Christi 
College,  Oxford. 

9.  The  Printing  Press. — Closely  connected  with  the  subject 
of  education  was  the  Invention  of  Printing.  No  event  of  any 
century  has  wrought  such  deep  and  lasting  influence  on  our  national 
history,  or  done  more  to  dispel  the  ignorance  upon  which  erroneous 
teachers  traded.  Henceforth  the  laborious  work  of  multiplying 
copies  of  any  book  by  hand  was  at  an  end,  to  say  nothing  of  the 
vast  difference  in  cost.  A  single  sheet  of  parchment  or  vellum 
written  out  in  the  old  black  letter  style  of  the  14th  century  would 
be  worth  about  two  shillings  at  the  present  value  of  money,  while  a 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY. 


IT 


complete  copy  of  Wycliffe's  Bible  would  cost  at  least  £40.  But  the  sub- 
Btitution  of  paper  for  skins  in  13oO,  succeeded  by  the  invention  of 
printing,  changed  all  this.  The  new  art  was  discovered  in  Germany 
by  a  man  named  Guttenburg  (A.D.  1440).  Wooden  blocks  came  into  use 
two  years  after,  and  types  cut  from  metal  in  1444.  The  roller  print- 
ing press  did  not  come  into  use  till  1450;  nor  w.is  the  invention 
brought  to  England  for  many  years  after.  A  native  of  Kent  named 
William  Caxton  had  learnt  the  trade  in  Holland,  whence  he  pro- 
ceeded to  Ghent  and  there  translated  and  published  the  History  <>/ 
Troy,  which  was  the  first  book  printed  in  the  English  tongue  (1471). 
He  came  to  England  two  years  after  and  set  up  a  press  in  the 
almonry  at  Westminster.  The  first  book  printed  on  English  ground 
was  the  Gam?  and  Playe  of  Chegse.  Most  of  Caxton's  books  were 
translate xl  from  French,  and  were  in  '  black  letter  '  type,  i.e.  '  Old 
Englisn'  characters. 
By  this  time  the 
vernacular  language- 
had  considerably  ' ^ 

changed,  and  even 
the  earlier  form  of 
'Middle  English' 
in  which  Wycliffe 
and  Chaucer  wrote 
(which  dates  roughly 
from  A.D.  1200  to 
1450)  was  greatly 
modified.  The  utc 
of  Norman  French 
in  Parliament  and 
the  Law-  Courts  ga  v  e 
place  to  the  vernac- 
ular in  the  time  of 
Edward  III.,  and 
English  had  been 
taught  in  the  schools 
eversince.  Too  much 
stress  has  been  laid 
on  the  late  appear- 
ance of  Bibles  and 
books  of  devotion 
in  English,  because 
the  demand  did  not 
rery  long  precede 
the  supply.  Printing 

pressed  were  set  up  ^  EABLY  ^iNTiya  PRESS. 

in  Oxford  in  1503,  after  which  the  trade  became  important   and 
lucrative.     The  earliest  Dooks  had  no  title-pages,  and  no  capital 


18  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

letters ;  nor  were  the  useful  comma  (,)  and  semi-colon  (;)  intro- 
duced. Words  were  often  spelt  phonetically,  and  sometimes  the 
same  word  was  spelt  in  different  ways  on  a  single  page.  The  reign 
of  Kichard  III.,  in  many  respects  execrable,  is  remarkable  for  a 
statute  which,  while  restricting  other  branches  of  foreign  trade, 
expressly  exempted  written  and  printed  books  ;  and  for  the  further 
fact  that  Acts  of  Parliament  were  then  printed  for  the  first  time. 
So  rapidly  did  books  multiply  after  this  that  within  a  hundred  years 
from  Caxton'3  time  no  less  than  10,000  distinct  works  had  been 
issued  from  the  press  by  some  350  printers  ;  which  were  circulated 
throughout  the  land.  Hence  we  know  a  great  deal  about  what  has 
happened  in  our  country  after  the  15th  century,  and  of  the  political 
and  theological  discussions  which  occupied  men's  minds.  For  the 
same  reason  it  is  difficult  to  make  selections  for  a  book  like  this 
from  the  innumerable  important  events  recorded,  without  exciting 
adverse  criticism  for  having  left  as  many  equally  important  ones 
unnoticed. 

10.  The  Wars  of  York  and  Lancaster.— We  must  not  over- 
look the  importance  of  the  internecine  strife  between  the  great 
English  nobles,  that  produced  such  fatal  revolutions  during  the 
15th  century.  The  deposition  of  Eichard  II.  in  1399  and  the  corona- 
tion of  Henry  IV.  in  his  stead  may  be  looked  upon  as  the  beginning 
of  the  struggle  :  for  in  1402  a  bold  attempt  was  made  by  the 
i'ej-cies,  of  Korthumberln.nd,  to  restore  the  Yorkist  Family.  A  great 
battle  was  fought  near  Shrewsbury  in  furtherance  of  their  plans,  at 
which  the  famous  '  Hotspur  '  lost  his  life,  and  the  Lancastrians,  who 
upheld  King  Henry  IV.,  won  the  day.  As  an  act  of  thanksgiving  the 
victors  erected  a  church  on  the  site  of  the  struggle  which  has  ever 
since  been  called  Battlefield  Church.  The  French  war  kept  the 
jealous  rivals  from  actual  warfare  for  the  next  50  years  ;  but  they 
kept  struggling  for  such  lucrative  positions  as  the  government  of 
England  could  provide.  After  the  French  provinces  were  surrendered 
the  enmity  of  the  nobles  again  became  openly  violent.  Richard, 
Duke  of  York,  heir  presumptive  to  the  throne  until  the  birth  of  an 
heir  to  Henry  VI., had  been  made  Lord  Protector  during  the  temporary 
insanity  of  that  king,  but  when  the  latter  recovered  he  was  deprived 
of  his  office  and  replaced  by  his  rival  Somerset.  The  disgraced 
Duke  at  once  appealed  to  arms ;  and  the  battles  that  ensued 
between  the  rival  factions  are  known  as  the  Wart  of  tlie  Soxes. 
The  badges  worn  by  each  side  caused  them  to  be  so  called. 
The  tradition  recorded  by  Shakespear  (Hen.  VI.  part  i,  act  ii. 
sc.  4)  accounts  for  the  choice  of  a  Red  Rose  by  the  Lancas- 
trians, and  a  White  Rose  by  the  Yorkists.  The  first  battle  was 
at  St.  Albans,  A.D.  1455.  Sometimes  the  Yorkists  won  and  some- 
times the  House  of  Lancaster.  At  Wakefield  (1460)  the  Duke 
of  York  was  killed ;  but  his  son  Edward  continued  the  struggle, 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY. 


19 


and  became  king  in  1461.  For  22  years  the  House  of  York 
continued  to  hold  the  throne,  but  not  without  much  bloodshed. 
In  1485  the  last  great  battle  was  fought  between  the  parties  at 
Bosworth  Field,  when  several  nobles  deserted  Richard  III.  and  victory 
once  more  fell  to  the  Red  Rose.  Henry,  earl  of  Richmond,  grandson 
of  Owen  Tudor,  (whose  mother's  grandfather  was  a  grandson  of 
Edward  III.  and  who  was  the  only  survivor  of  the  Lancastrian 
dynasty)  led  the  victorious  army  and  was  crowned  king  by  the  title 
of  Henry  VII.  ;  thus  introducing  the  '  Tudor  Dynasty.'  By  his 
marriage  with  Elizabeth  of  York,  daughter  of  Edward  IV.,  the  for- 
tunes of  the  rival  houses  were  united  and  the  fratricidal  strife  con- 
cluded; but  not  before  they  had  impoverished  the  land,  destroyed  the 
flower  of  English  youth,  and  almost  stamped  out  the  old  nobility. 
When  the  noblemen 
assembled  after  the 
battle  of  Bosworth 
there  were  found  to 
be  only  29  lay  barons 
alive.  Religious  life 
could  not  have  free 
course  while  such 
faction  fights  were 
general,  and  there- 
fore we  do  not  won- 
der that  the  history 
of  the  Church  in  the 
latter  half  of  the 
century  was  one  of 
humiliating  degene 
racy.  Also  we  musi 
consider  that  the  re 
membrance  of  the 
struggle  had  much  to 
do  with  the  very 
email  value  set  upon 
nnman  life  in  sue- 
ceeding  generations. 
The  Wars  cf  the  BATTLEFIELD  CHURCH,  SHREWSBURY. 

Roses  brought  the  feudal  baronage  to  an  end,  and  made  the  kings  so 
far  beyond  all  other  noblemen  in  power  that  for  some  time  to  come 
their  rule  was  absolute  and  despotic.  Henry's  title  to  the  Crown  was 
somewhat  defective,  but  he  strengthened  his  personal  position  by 
allowing  the  popes  to  govern  the  English  Church  absolutely. 

11.  Increasing  need  for  Church  Reform.— Henry  VII. 
had  a  fairly  prosperous  and  peaceful  reign,  during  which  the 
country  was  restored  to  a  measure  of  its  former  prosperity.  The 

B  2 


20  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

people  began  again  to  consider  ecclesiastical  affairs,  and  the  way 
was  steadily  being  shaped  for  the  final  struggle  against  papal  juris- 
diction that  was  bound  to  come.  The  culminating  point  of  foreign 
usurpation  occurred  when  Cardinal  Kempe  was  appointed  by  papal 
provision  to  the  see  of  Canterbury,  and  then  made  extraordinary 
legate  of  the  pope.1  This  triple  position  (cardinal,  primate,  and 
papal  legate)  was  accorded  also  to  Kempe's  successors,  Bourchier  and 
Biorton.  Under  their  rule,  which  extended  oyer  halt  a  century, 
1452-1502,  the  National  character  of  the  English  Church  became 
almost  extinct ;  until  it  seemed  to  be  a  mere  appanage  of  the 
papacy.  During  that  time  the  papal  chair  was  filled  by  men  of 
most  scandalous  lives  : — murderers  like  the  Borgias,  adulterers  like 
the  Medici,  and  infidels  like  Leo  X. — whose  avarice  led  them  to 
degrade  the  Church  and  her  Sacraments  in  return  for  money  pay- 
ments to  their  agents  and  collectors.  With  such  superiors  it  is  not 
surprising  that  the  clergy  of  that  day  were  not  distinguished  for 
integrity  and  virtue.  In  England  the  majority  of  the  bishops  and 
abbots  were  conspicuous  for  high  character  and  scholarship  ;  but  the 
moral  tone  and  intelligence  of  the  inferior  clergy  will  not  bear 
examination.  We  have  explained2  that  the  mediaeval  clergy  were 
divided  into  three  groups : — the  Seculars,  or  parish  priests  ;  the 
Regulars,  belonging  to  the  old  monasteries  ;  and  the  Mendicant 
Friars.  These  three  sections  lived  in  open  and  notorious  rivalry, 
and  kept  up  a  sort  of  triangular  duel  which  alone  threatened  to 
break  up  the  Church.  Among  the  Seculars  are  to  be  reckoned 
the  chantry  priests,  who  were  often  employed  to  fill  undignified 
positions  in  the  families  for  whose  dead  relatives  they  chanted  Mass. 
Altogether  the  clergy  of  the  time  did  not  inspire  the  laity  with  any 
great  amount  of  respect.  The  Church  Courts  also,  which  took 
cognisance  of  all  offences  against  the  moral  law,  sold  their  judgments 
by  accepting  pecuniary  fines,  thus  becoming  '  centres  of  corruption, 
which  archbishops,  legates,  and  councils  tried  to  reform  and  failed, 
acquiescing  in  'the  failure  rather  than  allow  the  intrusion  of  the 
secular  power.'*  While  earnest  minds  in  England  were  exercised 
with  such  things,  others  abroad  were  no  less  so.  Among  them 
stands  pre-eminent  the  great  Florentine  reformer,  Savonarola,  who 
unsparingly  denounced  abuses  and  demanded  Church  Reform.  For 
five  years  (1490-95)  he  wielded  unbounded  influence  over  the  people 
of  Florence  by  singularly  patriotic  and  judicious  Christian  zeal, 
regardless  alike  of  threats  and  bribes  from  the  shameless  popes  of 
lionie.  But  his  zeal  became  fanatical  and  destructive,  and  then 
"is  influence  waned.  Alexander  VI.  caused  him  to  be  strangled 
»nd  burnt  in  1498.  Another  loth  century  abuse  was  the  growing 
custom  of  pilgrimages  to  the  shrines  of  saints  by  the  well-to-do — 

i  See  Vol.  I.,  pp.  1T7— 8.  S  Vol.  I,  pp.  127, 186  and  SI*. 

8  T2Ub"p  Stubbs'  Constitutional  History,  Vol.  I.,  p.  378. 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY  II 

•acu  <is  tee  shrine  of  St.  Thomas  at  Canterbury,  the  snriae  of 
St.  Mary  at  Walsingham,  and  the  rood  (crucifix)  at  the  north 
door  of  St.  Paul's  Cathedral — and  the  adoration  of  images  by 
the  ignorant  poor.  The  Lollards  had  rightly  declared  these 
practices  to  be  idolatrous.  Educated  persons  might  be  able  to 
distinguish  between  obeisance  made  before  such  shrines  and  the 
srill  greater  reverence  due  to  God  '  orking  in  and  by  the 
ircaee';  as  did  Bishop  Pecock  wh  he  wrote  against  the 
1-ullards  that  '  no  man  taketh  f or  his  Go  and  worshipeth  .  .  .  . 
any  image  now  in  Christendom  after  that  the  man  is  come  to  years 
of  discretion,  and  is  past  childhood,  and  is  not  a  natural  fool ; '  but 
the  want  of  education  among  the  poor  made  them  incapable  of 
dissociating  their  outward  reverence  to  a  crucifix  from  the  higher 
worship  due  to  the  Being  it  represented,  and  there  was  the  greatest 
danger  that  similar  homage  rendered  to  pictures  and  statues  of  the 
Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  or  to  the  relics  and  shrines  of  saints  (who 
were  wrongly  supposed  to  take  personal  cognisance,  and  mediate  on 
behalf  of  individual  petitioners  outside  their  sphere)  would 
obscure  the  doctrine  of  the  One  Mediat  between  God  and  man. 

These  then  were  the  general  condition  of  the  Church  and  society 
at  the  time  when  Henry  VII.  was  buriod  in  the  beautiful  chantry 
chapel  he  caused  to  be  added  to  the  eastern  part  of  Westminster 
Abbey  ;  and  when  his  second  son  succeeded  to  the  thr^Lo  as  Henry 
VIII*  A.D.  15C9. 


CHAPTER    XVII. 
IKR   KING  ASD  HIS   CHANCELLORS  * 

*  Henceforward,  with  the  sovereignty  transform; 
tJntc  itself,  the  crown  assumes  a  voice 
Of  reciless  mastery  hitherto  unknown."—  Wer.trxcrH 

1.  The  Oxford  Reformers. — The  archbishop  of  Canterbury 
caring  the  early  part  of  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII.  was  William 
Warham.  He  occupied  tb.3  position  for  thirty  years  from  1503. 
During  his  primacy  Oxford  University  came  to  be  the  centre  of  t( 
remarkable  revival  of  ancient  literature,  which  greatly  assistec, 
decisions  upon  ecclesiastical  affairs  that  demanded  reform.  It  hac; 
be^un  in  Italy  by  researches  among  Pagan  classics,  but  these  soon 
gave  place  aniong  the  religiously  inclined  to  studies  in  the  original 
works  of  early  Latin  Fathers  of  the  Church  ;  and  after  the  fall  of 
Constantinople  in  H53,  which  drove  many  Greek  scholars  west- 
ward, in  the  writing!  of  the  Greek  Christian  Fathers  also.  It  then 


ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    ON 


S2 


became  an  accepted 

worthless  ;  and  ]ust  as  Wychffe  B  *™£gV  as  it  was  called, 
from  Oxford  to  Prague,  so  the  -A«w  ^«™  *»£•  h  home  at 
was  transplanted  from  ^  c^^  Italy^to^  ^ 

Oxford.  Warliamja  gWWs?,/  then  Dean  of  Lincoln  and  Royal 
ably  seconded  by  f  ^f^  seS  ou^  ^and  sending  to  Oxford  for 
Almoner,  who  took  delight  in  s  ag  ou  to  hig  notice 

instruction  such  promiBing  ;  youth  ^  a9  wer«  itt      gnd  lovabie  young 

wasbrought  under  the 


joined  by   a   poor  scholar,   lc  town   a»  x,  ,  Q£  ^ 

'    *  the 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  23 

rest."  From  this  time  the  watchword  of  Church  reformers  in 
England  was  '  Scripture  and  the  primitive  fathers  '  rersut  mediaeval 
tradition.  Colet  was  presently  made  dean  of  St.  Paul's,  More 
became  a  barrister  and  entered  Parliament,  and  Erasmus  went 
abroad  to  study.  The  friends  afterwards  formed  a  literary  circle  in 
London,  and  were  joined  by  others  of  like  mind.  When  Henry  VIII. 
ascended  the  throne,  the  little  band  of  scholars  was  received  into 
high  favour  at  Court.  Erasmus  then  became  professor  of  Greek 
at  Cambridge,  and  Colet  preached  '  Reform '  from  the  pulpit  of  St. 
Paul's.  The  friends  made  up  their  minds  to  place  the  "  New 
Learning  "  on  a  firm  basis  and  provide  for  its  continuance.  Colet's 
father  had  died  and  left  him  very  wealthy,  but  he  devoted  his  whole 
fortune  to  the  foundation  of  a  Grammar  School  close  to  his  cathedral, 
where  boys  might  be  instructed  in  classical  Latin  and  Greek,  instead 
of  the  bad  Latin  of  the  mediaeval  schoolmen.  Linacre  and  Erasmus 
wrote  the  school  books,  and  Colet  a  simple  Latin  primer.  These  were 
the  beginnings  of  the  famous  St.  Paul's  School  that  continued  to 
abide  under  the  shadow  of  St.  Paul's  until  it  was  removed  to  the 
west  of  London  in  1885.  It  caused  a  great  stir  in  the  world  of  letters, 
and  Thomas  More  prophesied  that  it  would  be  like  the  wooden  horse 
filled  with  armed  Greeks  for  the  destruction  of  barbarian  Troy.1 
When  Convocation  assembled  on  Feb.  6th,  1512,  Colet  preached  a 
sermon  to  the  assembled  prelates,  than  which  no  more  outspoken 
denunciation  of  existing  evils  in  the  Church  was  ever  delivered. 
Some  of  the  bishops  were  so  offended  at  his  severe  tirade  against  the 
clergy,  that  they  tried  to  accuse  him  of  heresy  :  but  Archbishop 
Warham  vetoed  the  charge.  And  when  Colet  lifted  up  his  voice 
against  the  unnecessary  wars  with  France,  his  enemies  tried 
In  vain  to  incense  the  young  king  against  him.  So  the  cause 
prospered.  The  fame  of  the  scholars  spread  throughout  Europe 
and  they  rose  to  higher  positions  of  influence.  Erasmus  became 
a  councillor  of  the  emperor  of  Germany,  and  More  accepted 
a  lucrative  post  at  Henry's  court.  Both  published  books  explanatory 
of  their  political  principles,  Erasmus  setting  forth  the  duties  of  a 
monarch  in  his  '  Christian  Prince  '  ;  and  More  his  notions  of  an  ideal 
ttate  in  the  famous  '  Utopia,'  (nowhere).  The  keynote  of  both  books 
Ivas  that  governments  and  nations  exist  for  the  good  of  the  whole 
people.  More's  'Utopia'  specially  advocated  religious  toleration, 
but  strongly  discountenanced  schism.  It  pictured  all  sorts  of  people, 
with  differing  creeds,  'worshipping  together  in  one  united  and 
simple  mode  of  worship,  expressly  so  arranged  as  to  hurt  the  feelings 
of  no  sect  among  them  ;  so  that  they  all  might  join  in  it  as  an 
expression  of  their  common  brotherhood  in  the  sight  of  God.*1  Yet  its 
author  subsequently  sat  as  judge  over  many  unfortunate  creatures 
who  conscientiously  differed  in  religion  from  himself  1  But  the 

1  "  Seebohm'?  Oxford  Befonners — Colet,  Erasmus,  *nd  More."       1  IbitL 


24  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    ON 

greatest  work  of  that  time  was  the  publication  (1516)  of  the  Greek 
Testament,  with  a  new  Latin  translation,  in  parallel  columns  ;  upon 
which  Erasmus  had  been  engaged  for  years.  In  the  preface  he  wrote  : 
"  I  wish  that  even  the  weakest  woman  should  read  the  Gospels — should  read  the 
Epistles  of  Paul ;  and  I  wish  that  they  were  translated  Into  all  languages,  so  that 
....  the  husbandman  should  sing  portions  of  them  to  himself  as  he  follows 
the  plough,  that  the  weaver  should  hum  them  to  the  tune  of  his  shuttle,  that  tha 
traveller  should  beguile  with  their  stories  the  tedium  of  his  journey." 

This  would  seem  a  very  natural  wish  in  our  day,  but  it  was  heresy 
when  Erasmus  penned  it.  Only  he  was  too  cosmopolitan  to  be 
arraigned  by  any  nation.  After  all  it  was  but  a  wish.  Not  even 
Erasmus  with  all  his  powerful  friends  in  high  places  dare  venture 
upon  a  vernacular  translation  ;  but  he  paved  the  way  to  which 
Wycliffe  had  pointed,  and  the  Christian  world  must  thank  him. 
Erasmus  lived  to  take  part  in  many  a  bitter  controversy  that  waa 
looming  in  the  distance,  but  Colet  died  in  retirement  A.D.  1519. 
Their  friend  More,  now  speaker  of  the  House  of  Commons,  began  to 
look  coldly  on  the  work,  and  other  men  stepped  into  the  breach. 

2.  Wolsey's  Scheme  for  Church  Reform. — Thomas  Wolsey 
had  now  reached  the  zenith  of  his  fame,  though  not  of  his  ambition. 
He  had  been  made  archbishop  of  York  A.D.  1514,  lord  high  chancellor 
in  1515,  and  a  cardinal  the  same  year.  In  1517,  by  special  permission 
and  request  of  the  king,  he  became  extraordinary  legate  of  the  pope 
with  full  power  over  all  the  religious  houses  that  had  been  exempt 
from  episcopal  jurisdiction.  The  tide  of  public  opinion  was  now  so 
strongly  set  against  the  ignorance  and  vices  of  many  monks  and 
friars  that  Wolsey  conceived  a  plan  for  their  suppression.  As  a 
patron  of  the  '  new  learning,'  he  was  able  to  find  a  good  excuse. 
The  only  reasons  left  for  the  existence  of  monasteries,  now 
that  their  piety  and  seclusion  were  things  of  the  past,  was  their 
literary  and  hospitable  character ;  but  men  were  beginning  to  see 
that  their  educational  work  could  be  better  done  by  the  new  schools 
and  colleges,  and  that — 

They  need  not  bid,  for  cloistered  cell, 

Their  neighbour  and  their  work  farewell. 

Wolsey  first  persuaded  the  University  of  Oxford  to  let  him  remodel 
its  statutes  ;  and  followed  that  up  by  founding  a  number  of  profes- 
sorships for  theology  and  classics,  that  the  next  generation  of  clergy 
might  at  least  be  freer  from  such  charges  of  ignorance  as  Colet  and 
others  had  brought  against  them.  Wolsey  then  proceeded  to  enquire 
minutely  into  the  condition  of  monasticism  generally,  accumulating 
stores  of  information  to  their  great  discredit.  A  fair  summary  of 
such  information  occurs  in  a  letter  received  by  Wolsey  from  the 
Bishop  of  Worcester,  wherein  the  latter  explained  "  the  need  in  which 
monasteries  stood  of  reformation,  and  that  great  care  would  be 


ENGLISH  CHURCH   HISTORY. 


required  in  dealine  with  nunneries,  as  great  abuses  would  be  found 
in  them."  In  consequence  Wolsey  wrote  to  the  king  that  there  were 
many  •  exile  [alien]  and  small 
monasteries  wherein  neither 
God  is  served  nor  religion  kej. 
and  asked  that  the  worst  and 
least  necessary  might  be  sup- 
pressed in  order  that  educa- 
tional institutions  might  be 
founded  with  their  revenues. 
Wolsey's  most  practical  idea 
was  the  foundation  of  the 
famous  college  of  Christ  church, 
U-rford,  with  a  feeding  inbtitn- 
tiun  for  it  in  the  shape  of  a 
public  grammar  school  in  his 
native  town  of  Ipswich.  He 
also  proposed  to  augment  the 
number  of  bishops.  There  had 
been  no  increase  in  the  English 
episcopate  during  the  times  of 
papal  interference,  and  Wolsey 
desired  that  new  bishoprics 
should  be  endowed  from  the 
revenues  of  suppressed  monas-  CABDIXAL  WOLSEY. 

teries.  He  did  not  live  to  see  this  larger  scheme  completed,  but 
the  wisdom  of  the  plan  was  so  clear  that  it  was  subsequently 
carried  ont,  as  we  shall  explain  fully  in  the  next  chapter. 
He  also  endeavoured  to  persuade  the  Church  in  France  to  join  the 
Church  of  England  in  repudiating  papal  supremacy,  but  did  not 
succeed.  He  played  in  fact  a  double  game.  His  love  of  popularity 
and  desire  to  serve  the  king  moved  him  to  side  with  public  opinion 
in  England  against  the  foreign  jurisdiction ;  but  as  his  excessive 
ambition  caused  him  to  covet  the  papal  chair  it  was  not  his  desire 
that  England  should  be  cut  off  from  communion  with  Rome,  or  that 
Hildebrand'sidea  of  an  Universal  Church  recognising  a  single  earthly 
chief  should  fall  to  the  ground.  The  king  at  this  time  had  great 
confidence  in  his  chancellor,  and  entered  heartily  into  his  projects, 
with  the  result  that  Wolsey  was  allowed  to  summon  the  Convocations 
of  York  and  Canterbury  in  his  legatine  capacity  for  a  joint  synod  at 
Westminster,  A.D.  1523,  to  formulate  and  carry  out  the  suggested 
reforms  ;  bulls  being  obtained  from  Rome  for  the  purpose.  This 
resulted  in  the  suppression  in  many  different  counties  of  forty 
monasteries  of  nearly  every  religions  order  of  monks  and  nuns,  but 
chiefly  Benedictine,  Angustinian.  and  Cluniac  ;  and  the  introduction 
of  new  disciplinary  rules  in  many  other  houses,  chiefly  the  Augua- 
tinian.  On  the  other  hand  VVolsey  was  himself  the  greatest  offender 


26 


ILLUSTRATED    NOT£S    ON 


in  a  different  branch  of  ecclesiastical  abuses.  He  was  a  man  of 
luxurious  tastes  who  accumulated  great  wealth  by  holding  in  com- 
mendam  a  number  of  the  richest  benefices  in  England  and  abroad, 
and  thus  was  able  to  build  and  maintain  great  palaces  at  Hampton 
Court,  Esher.  Fleet  Street,  and  Whitehall,  where  he  lived  in  almost 
regal  state  until  the  equally  extravagant  king  was  filled  with  envy. 
Wolsey's  rapid  rise  in  influence  and  wealth  was  exceeded  by  the 
rapidity  of  his  degradation.  He  was  not  willing  that  the  king  should 
be  divorced  from  his  first  wife  without  the  consent  of  che  pope, 
whereupon  he  was  dismissed  from  the  Court,  and  deprived  of  his 
high  offices  one  by  one  ;  Sir  Thomas  More  succeeding  him  as  chan- 
cellor (1529).  The  fortune  Wolsey  had  amassed  was  made  a  further 
cause  of  offence,  and  in  the  manner  of  the  time  it  was  declared 
confiscate.  As  Henry  never  ruined  a  man  by  halves,  or  allowed  him 
opportunity  to  regain  popularity,  Wolsey's  degradation  was  quickly 
followed  by  a  trumped-up  charge  of  treason.  On  his  way  from  York 

to  London  to  answer 


this  accusation  the 
Cardinal  was  taken 
ill  at  Leicester  Abbey, 
where  he  died  in  a 
few  hours.  Readers 
are  asked  to  remem- 
ber that  all  Wolsey'a 
wise  and  temperate 
schemes  for  Church 
Keform  were  made 
long  before  the  king's 
domestic  difficulties 
arose  ;  that  they  were 
in  active  operation  up 
to  the  time  of  his 
fall  ;  and  although 
temporarily  checked 
by  his  death  were 
shortly  afterwards 
carried  on  with  vigour. 
Sir  Thomas  More  made 
them  the  subject  of 
his  earliest  official 
utterances  as  lord 
chancellor.  They  are 
therefore  looked  upon 
ys|  by  many,  apparently 
with  good  reason,  as 
the  first  effective  be- 
ginnings of  actual  reformation  in  the  National  Church,  which  hac 


L.E1CESTKB   ABBEY  EUINS. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  27 

been  so  earnestly  desired  for  generations.  It  is  a  gross  error 
to  suppose  that  matrimonial  complications  of  Henry  VIII.  were 
the  causes  of  such  reformation.  They  were  occasions  which  accelerated 
some  of  its  attendant  circumstances,  but  all  measures  of  Church 
Reform  can  be  clearly  shewn  to  have  originated  from  the  Church 
herself.  It  would  be  useless  to  discuss  in  this  small  book 
the  probable  direction  reform  would  have  taken  had  Wolsey 
lived  to  carry  on  the  work  ;  nor  are  we  concerned  at  all  with 
movements  under  individual  leaders ;  it  is  sufficient  for  our  purpose 
that  the  reformation  which  actually  took  place  had  its  rise  in  a 
general  recognition  of  the  rights  of  National  Churches  to  control 
their  own  affairs,  so  far  as  consistent  with  the  primitive  Church 
customs  and  the  plain  Word  of  God,  The  charge  against  Wolsey 
was  that  he  had  illegally  exercised  legatine  authority  in  England 
contrary  to  the  Statute  of  Pramunire.  The  king  had  given  him 
special  license  to  do  so  under  the  great  seal,  and  therefore  the  pro- 
ceedings against  him  were  unfair.  Still  it  shows  the  latent  power 
in  the  statute  which  was  well  known  to  all  lawyers  of  the  time.  The 
king  used  the  ancient  statute  mercilessly,  for  his  selfish  ends  no 
doubt,  but  everything  was  done  under  existing  law. 

3.  The  King's  Divorce.— It  is  necessary  to  glance  briefly  at 
Henry's  domestic  troubles.  They  came  about  in  this  way  : — 
Henry  VII.  had  two  sons,  Arthur  and  Henry.  Arthur  was  married 
to  Princess  Catharine  of  Arragon  while  yet  a  boy,  and  died,  so 
it  was  afterwards  alleged  by  the  lady,  before  the  marriage  was 
consummated.  Henry  VII.  then  betrothed  Catherine  to  his  still 
yonneer  son  Henry,  in  defiance  of  the  table  of  affinity  obtaining 
for  the  purpose  a  dispensation  from  the  bishop  of  Rome.  Oue 
of  the  evils  attending  the  papacy  had  been  and  still  is  its  assump- 
tion of  power  to  allow  rich  appellants  to  marry  within  the  pro- 
hibited degrees  of  relationship,  and  to  annul  admittedly  valid 
unions,  thus  violating  the  sanctity  of  marriage.  Prince  Henry 
at  first  repudiated  the  alliance,  but  on  succeeding  to  his  father's 
throne  as  Henry  VIII.  was  advised  to  publicly  acknowledge 
the  illegal  union.  This  marriage  was  a  fruitful  source  of  trouble  in 
after  days,  owing  to  the  singular  fatality  that  followed  the  offspring 
of  it.  When  all  the  children  died,  except  Princess  Mary,  some  one 
suggested  to  the  king  that  it  was  a  judgment  from  heaven  ;  and 
when  a  marriage  between  the  surviving  child  and  a  French  prince 
was  prevented,  through  doubt  of  her  legitimacy,  he  wished  to  divorce 
his  queen.  There  were  not  wanting  ladies  glad  to  occupy  her 
place.  Henry's  real  reason  may  be  traced  to  this  latter  cause. 
Queen  Catharine,  being  much  older  than  himself,  was  now  a  faded 
invalid,  long  past  her  prime,  while  he  was  in  the  vigour  of  manhood 
and  desirous  of  marrying  an  attractive  lady  of  court,  named  Anne 
Boleyn.  Justice  and  equity  demanded  that  the  best  should  have 


ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    ON 


been  made  of  his  bad  bargain  with  Catherine,  after  a  union  of  more 
than  20  years,  and  therefore  the  king's  action  was  inexcusable.  At 
that  time  all  questions  relating  to  marriage  were  decided  by  the 
Church  courts.  Negotiations  were  set  on  foot  between  Henry  and 
the  pope  in  1527  with  the  object  of  setting  aside  the  marriage, 
which  a  previous  pope  had  wrongly  sanctioned  ;  but  the  pope  had  to 
consider  other  European  princes  who  were  related  to  the  queen,  and 
delayed  decision  so  long  that  Henry,  in  disgust,  determined  to  take 
up  the  cause  of  the  national  clergy  who  weie  writhing  under  the 
papal  yoke,  and  hastened  the  passage  of  the  measures  (recommenced 
by  the  Convocations); 
•which  declared  (A.u. 
1531)  that  the  bishop 
of  Rome  should  no 
longer  have  jurisdic- 
tion, spiritual  or  tem- 
poral, in  England, 
and  that  the  king 
alone  ought  to  have 
supreme  authority. 
A  special  act  en- 
abling him  to  divorce 
Catharine  was  then 
a  very  easy  matter. 
Her  appeal  to  papal 
arbitration  in  the 
year  1529  gave  rise  to 
the  statute  (24  Henry 
VIII.,  c.  12)  which 
confirmed  in  a  strin- 
gent manner  all  pre- 
vious laws  against, 
appeals  to  Rome. 
Acting  on  the  as- 
sumption, that  his 
first  marriage  was 
illegal,  the  king  mar- 
ried Anne  Boleyn  in 
January,  1533.  The 
divorce  was  not  pro- 
nounced until  three 
months  later.  Cath- 
arine died  in  1536, 
and  was  buried  in 
Peterborough  Cathe- 
dral. We  have  here 


NORTH  TRANSEPT,  PETBRBORO1   CATHEDRAL. 


expressed  in  few  sentences  the   result   of    debates,  passions,  and 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  99 

intrigues  during  several  years,  which  some  people  have  thought 
to  be  the  chief  cause  of  the  English  Reformation.  In  reality  it 
was  only  an  incident  in  a  great  drama,  of  which  the  prologue  and 
plot  must  oe  looked  for  elsewhere.  Henry's  great  advocate  was 
Thomas  Cranmer,  who  was  sent  to  Rome  in  1530  to  plead  against 
the  appeal  lodged  by  Queen  Catharine  the  previous  year.  He  became 
archbishop  of  Canterbury  on  the  death  of  Warham  (March,  1533), 
in  return  for  his  help  in  furnishing  the  king  with  arguments  in 
favour  of  the  divorce.  Cranmer's  first  act  on  attaining  the  primacy 
was  to  pronounce  Catharine's  marriage  void.  The  pope  resented 
this  defiant  act  by  declaring  (Sept.,  1533)  it  to  be  valid.  Cranmer 
then  became  the  leader  of  the  anti-papal  movement,  and  his  name 
has  been  associated,  in  consequence,  with  all  the  good  and  all  the 
evil  that  those  times  brought  forth,  according  to  the  prejudiced 
ideas  of  different  partisans  ;  so  that  some  consider  him  a  saint,  while 
others  load  his  memory  with  ignominy.  With  the  exception  of  Fisher, 
the  aged  bishop  of  Rochester,  the  prelates  were  unanimously  of  opinion 
that  the  king's  marriage  with  Catharine  was  invalid ;  and  there  was  no 
serious  opposition  in  the  House  of  Lords  to  the  statutes  directed 
against  papal  authority  that  preceded  or  succeeded  the  divorce. 
Englishmen  had  long  been  wishing  to  get  rid  of  the  foreign 
jurisdiction ;  and  when  there  was  a  possibility  of  obtaining  their 
desire,  and  pleasing  the  popular  king  at  the  same  time,  all 
parties  in  the  State  were  pleased.  The  sequence  of  events  at  this 
time  is  noteworthy.  Wolsey's  reforms  were  in  full  progress  by 
1523  ;  the  divorce  was  not  thought  of  until  four  years  after,  nor 
did  it  become  an  accomplished  fact  until  1533  ;  whereas  the  chief 
steps  by  which  the  National  Church  regained  its  independence  h:id 
been  taken  at  the  suggestion  of  Convocation  before  that  event,  and 
independently  of  it. 

4.  Convocation  and  the  Seven  Years'  Parliament.1— 
In  the  year  1529  a  new  Parliament  was  called  together ;  and  as 
there  was  not  much  freedom  of  election  then  it  consisted  chieily 
of  those'  who  were  friendly  to  the  king's  divorce.  This  Parliament 
lasted  seven  years,  and  passed  the  various  statutes  by  which  the 
reforming  opinions  received  legal  sanction.  Because  each  stage  in 
the  work  of  reform  obtained  the  sanction  of  the  civil  legislature,  it 
is  assumed  by  some  that  King  and  Parliament  only  undertook  the 
work  of  reforming  the  Church,  from  without.  But  this  is  just  the 
reverse  of  what  really  happened  ;  for  the  Church's  representative 
assemblies,  the  Convocations  of  York  and  Canterbury,  first  passed 
the  measures  and  then  submitted  them  to  Parliament  and  the  king 
for  ratification.  This  still  remains  the  practice  and  privilege  of  the 
National  Church ;  which  has  never  surrendered  its  power  and 

\  Wayland  Joyce's  Actt  of  Convocaticn,  and  Amos'  StatuUt  c/  tkt  Re/."matijn. 


30  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES   ON 

authority  '  to  ordain,  change  and  abolish  '  its  ceremonies  and  rites, 
nor  allowed  princes  the  ministering  of  God's  Word  or  the  Sacra- 
ments. The  question  of  Jurisdiction  cannot  be  considered  a  purely 
ecclesiastical  one,  because  no  doctrine  or  ceremony  is  affected  thereby; 
so  that  statutes  against  the  pope's  authority  might  very  properly 
have  been  formulated  without  consulting  the  Church.  But  as  a 
matter  of  fact  Parliament  rarely  ventured  upon  such  matters  until 
Convocation  had  taken  the  initiative.  For  instance,  we  find  that 
it  was  Convocation  (A.D.  1531),  speaking  in  the  name  of  the 
National  Church,  which  suggested  that  the  obedience  of  England 
should  be  withdrawn  from  the  see  of  Rome.  The  cause  was  not  the 
divorce  in  any  degree,  but  the  pressure  of  the  papal  taxation.  The 
papal  Curia  would  not  appoint  to  a  bishopric  unless  the  nominee 
paid  to  the  pope  the  whole  of  his  first  year's  income  in  advance, 
together  with  large  sums  for  bulls  of  consecration  and  admission  to 
the  see.  The  clergy  had  just  been  punished  under  Prcemunire  for 
accepting  Wolsey  as  papal  legate  (see  next  page)  and  they  naturally 
argued  that  an  illegal  authority  could  not  demand  tribute.  So  they 
petitioned  the  king  to  '  ordain  in  this  present  Parliament  that  these 
annates  or  first  fruits  should  no  longer  be  paid,  and  that  if  the  pope 
should  proceed  to  enforce  payment,  by  interdict  or  otherwise,  then 
the  obedience  of  the  king  and  his  people  should  be  altogether  with- 
drawn from  the  pope.'  Parliament  assented  to  the  petition  of  Con- 
vocation by  passing  a  statute  (25  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  20)  in  accordance  with 
its  terms.  Disinterested  motives  could  hardly  have  been  expected 
from  the  king  at  this  juncture,  because  he  wished  to  obtain  the 
sanction  of  the  pope  for  his  divorce.  He  withheld  his  final  assent  to 
give  that  pontiff  time  for  consideration  ;  but  it  became  law  by  letters 
patent  as  soon  as  Henry  found  he  would  not  yield.  Thus  although 
the  divorce  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  petition  of  Convocation,  it  had 
all  to  do  with  the  decision  of  the  king.  And  so  throughout.  The 
need  of  the  Church  was  made  to  serve  the  personal  interest  of  Henry 
VIII.  Henry  readily  acceded  to  the  petition  of  the  clergy  that  annates 
should  not  be  paid  to  the  pope,  but  as  soon  as  the  royal  supre- 
macy was  regained  he  ordered  that  they  should  be  paid  to  himself 
instead  of  to  Rome.  The  Church  led  the  van  also  in  the  complete 
repudiation  of  papal  authority,  for  on  March  31, 1534,  the  Convocation 
of  Canterbury  declared  that  '  the  bishop  of  Rome  hath  no  greater 
jurisdiction  conferred  on  him  by  God  over  this  country  than  any  other 
foreign  bishop.'  The  Convocation  of  York  made  a  similar  declaration 
on  the  5th  May  that  year,  and  the  clergy  and  monks  of  both 
provinces,  almost  without  exception,  readily  signed  the  document. 
It  was  some  months  afterwards  that  the  Act  (25  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  21) 
was  passed  prohibiting  the  publication  of  any  more  papal  bulls  ;  and 
still  later  (26  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  1)  before  Parliament  legalized  the  royal 
supremacy  ;  while  it  was  not  until  the  next  Parliament  (1537)  that  the 
decisive  and  final  statute  (28  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  10)  terminated  for  ever 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY.  31 

the  pope's  jardisdiction  in  England.  This  Parliament  passed  many 
other  statutes  dealing  with  smaller  matters  arising  out  of  the  above, 
and  with  the  royal  supremacy  ;  it  also  restricted  certain  privileges 
that  had  accrued  to  the  clergy  through  their  connection  with  Rome, 
such  as  the  constitution  of  the  Ecclesiastical  Courts.  Convocation 
gave  its  formal  assent  after  discussion,  but  no  vital  principle  was 
affected  thereby.  The  point  to  be  insisted  on  is  that  the  '  Seven 
Years  Parliament '  did  not  pass  a  single  statute  nor  clause  of  a 
statute,  which  had  for  its  object  the  annihilation  of  the  old 
religious  body  of  the  land,  or  the  formation  of  a  new  religious 
body  ;  and  that  all  the  changes  received  the  prior  assent  of 
the  old  National  Church,  by  its  own  representative  assembly  of 
Convocation,  which  sat  concurrently  with  parliament  throughout. 
The  declared  object  of  Parliament  was  the  restoration  of  rights  and 
privileges  anciently  held  but  afterwards  usurped  ;  although  it  must 
be  confessed  that  over  anxiety  to  preserve  the  rights  of  laymen  resulted 
in  loss  to  the  clergy  of  several  privileges  they  had  long  enjoyed. 

5.  The  Royal  Supremacy. — It  has  often  been  said  with  a  sneer 
that  because  Clement  VII.  declined  to  minister  to  his  passion  Henry 
VIII.  destroyed  papal  power  in  England,  and  made  himself  the  pope 
of  a  Church  of  his  own  creation.  This  is  a  short  and  easy  but  very 
untrue  way  of  dealing  with  the  complications  of  that  time.  The  supre- 
macy of  the  English  kings  was  no  new  thing,  although  it  had  been 
in  abeyance  for  a  time.  It  is  true  that  Henry  revived  it,  and 
obtained  explanatory  statutes  confirming  his  actions  under  ancient 
ones,  but  it  was  well  understood  that  the  principles  were 
sufficiently  assured  by  the  older  ones.  The  Prcmunire  statute 
of  Richard  II.,  under  which  Wblsey  had  been  charged  with 
treason,  contained  a  clause  that  all  abettors  and  counsellors  of 
any  persons  chargeable  under  that  act  were  equally  liable  to  its 
penalties.  A  great  stir  was  caused  by  Henry's  determination  to 
enforce  that  clause  ;  for  all  the  clergy  and  laity  had  acquiesced  in 
Wolsey's  exercise  of  legatine  authority,  thus  violating  the  letter  of 
the  ancient  law.  Parliament  made  an  abject  apology  in  the  name  of 
the  laity,  and  were  dismissed  with  a  sharp  reprimand.  Convocation 
as  representing  the  clergy  did  not  escape  so  easily,  for  they  had  to  pay 
an  enormous  fine  before  the  king  would  pardon  them.  This  was  in 
1530.  Anything  more  arbitrary  than  the  king's  action  in  this  matter 
cannot  be  conceived,  but  it  is  well  that  we  should  understand  what 
terrible  statutes  were  hanging  over  the  heads  of  those  who  in  this 
country  should  assent  to  papal  jurisdiction  before  the  so-called  breach 
with  Rome,  and  while  it  was  still  possible  that  the  pope  might 
sanction  the  divorce.  It  is  supposed  that  the  king  desired  to  obtain 
an  unconditional  acknowledgment  of  his  supremacy  over  the 
Church  ;  but  he  did  not  get  it.  A  statute  was  framed  to  legalize  the 
imposition  of  the  above  mentioned  fine,  which  spoke  of  "the  English 


32 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


Church  and  clergy  of  which  the  king  alone  is  protector  and 
Supreme  Head."  But  the  Convocations  refused  to  accept  such  uDquali- 
fied  terms  ;  and  had  them  limited  by  making  the  clause  read  "  the 
English  Church  and  clergy  of  which  we  recognise  his  Majesty  as 
the  singular  protector,  the  sole  and  supreme  ruler,  and,  so  far  at 
is  allowed  by  the  law  of  Christ,1  the  Supreme  Head."  The  debates 
of  Convocation  on  this  point  were  very  useful  because  they  drew  forth 
explanations  from  the  king  that  no  intrusion  into  priestly  functiors 
was  meant  by  the  rejected  title,  but  only  the  resumption  of  jurisdic- 
tion over  spiritual  things  so  far  as  they  included  matters  of  property 
and  justice.  The  clergy  and  laity  were  almost  unanimous  in  assent- 
ing to  the  king's  supremacy  as  so  limited  ;  but  there  were  several 
prominent  persons  who  disliked  the  tendency  of  affairs,  and  con- 


BIB  THOMAS  MORE  S   HOCSE,  CHELSEA 

Bcientiously  objected  to  the  king's  proposed  divorce  or  any  limitation 
of  the  pope's  existing  authority.  Chief  among  them  were  John 
Fisher,  bishop  of  Rochester,  and  Sir  Thomas  More,  the  lord  chan- 
cellor. The  latter,  forseeing  that  troubles  were  brewing,  resigned 
his  office,  and  lived  in  close  retirement  at  his  ancestral  home  in 
Chelsea,  his  place  as  chief  adviser  of  the  Crown  being  filled  by 
Thomas  CromrveU.  (See  page  51).  The  great  '  Act  of  Supremacy  ' 
(26  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  1)  expressly  states  in  the  preamble  the  prior 

1  The  law  of  Christ  as  laid  down  in  the  New  Testament  (Rom.  xiii.  1-6  and  1  Pet. 
ii.  13-15)  clearly  indicates  that  submission  should  be  made  by  Christians  to  the  civil 
rulers,  because  they  are  placed  in  their  high  position  to  bear  the  sword  of  justice  ai 
God'g  ministers,  and  therefore,  as  our  37th  Article  rightly  declares,  the  monarch 
has  chief  power  '  over  all  estates  of  men  in  this  realm,  ecclesiastical  or  civil.' 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  33 

existence  of  the  right,  and  its  acceptance  by  the  Convocation  ;  and 
th.it  the  clauses  which  followed  were  only  intended  to  corroborate 
and  confirm.      Nor   can   there   be  doubt   on   this   point.     BUliops 
Gardiner    of    Winchester,   and    Tonstall    of    Durham,   who    after- 
wards became  chief  advisers  of  Queen  Mary,  took  pains  to  explain 
that  '  no  new  thing  was  introduced  when  the  king  was  declared 
to  be  the   Supreme   Head.'      Lawyers   all   agree   that   power   was 
restored  to  the  Crown,  not  conferred  upon  it,  and  that  the  results 
of  the  acts   enabled  Henry  VIII.  to   reassum?   the   authority    and 
prerogatives  of  the  Crown  from  which  the  kings  of  England  had 
never  formally  departed,  though  they  had  for  a  century  connived 
at   an   invasion   and   usurpation   of   them.     Sir  Thomas   More   and 
Bishop  Fisher  were  the  only  men  of  imj>ortance  who  objected  to 
this  statute  of  supremacy  when  all  chief  persons  in  the  realm  were 
required  to  take  the  oath  which  it  imposed,  and  they  were  sent  to 
the  Tower  for  their  resistance  (April  1534).     They  did  not  object  to 
the   Succession  Act  (26   Hen.  VIII.,  c.  2)   which   legalized  the  off- 
spring of  Henry's  second  marriage,  for  both  offered  to  swear  allegiance 
to    Anne    Boleyn's    children    in     preference    to    those    of    Queen 
Catharine  ;  but  they  declined  to  accept  the  particular  form  of  oath 
submitted  because  they  had  persuaded  themselves  that  allegiance  to 
the  pope  ou;_rht  not  to  be  withdrawn.     That  this  position  was  well 
understood  at  Rome  is  clear  from  the  circumstance  that  a  cardinal's 
kit  was  sent  to  Bishop  Fisher,  which  incensed  the  king  still  further. 
The  bishop  of  Rome  responsible  for  this  ill-advised  act  was  Paul  III. 
He  launched  all  manner  of  interdicts  and  excommunications  against 
England  and  its  king,  absolved  Henry's  subjects  from  their  allegiance, 
and  incited  other  European  princes  to  depose  him.     The  king  of 
France  remonstrated  against  such  rashness,  and  the  anathemas  were 
withheld   until   the  dissolution   of  monasteries  and  suppression  of 
shrines  were  nearly  completed  (1539).     After  lingering  more  than 
a  year  in  the  Tower,  Bishop  Fisher  was  beheaded  for  high  treason, 
Jane  22nd,  1535  ;  and  Sir  Thomas  More  met  with  the  same  ill-fate 
on  July  6th.     The  judicial  murders  of  two  such  men  as  these  will 
always  be  deplored  ;  but  they  had  made  themselves  the  champions 
of  a  system,  conscientiously  no  doubt,  which  had  wrought  intolerable 
injury  to  our  country  ;  and    now  that  a  determination  to  resume 
national  rights  was  on  all  hands  agreed  to,  those  who  resisted  were 
accounted  traitors  to  the  common  weal.      Dissatisfaction  was  freely 
expressed  abroad  at  such  extreme  measures,  but  Gardiner,  bishop  of 
Winchester,  and  Fox,  bishop  of  Hereford,  were  sent  to  France  and 
Saxony  to  explain  matters.     It  is  thought  by  some  that  the  repudia- 
tion of  papal  jurisdiction   was  a  violation  of  an  existing   compact 
between  the  Church  of  England  anil  Rome,  but  as  there  is  no  law, 
canon,  statute,  or  decree  on  record  in  all  our  history,  assenting  to 
papal  authority  in  this  land,  such  a  position  is  quite  untenable.     The 
Church  of  England  gladly  assented  to  the  restore!  supremacy  of  the 


34  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES   ON 

English  Crown,  that  she  might  be  more  free  to  reform  doctrinal 
abuses  than  the  popes  were  willing  to  allow;  but  there  was  no 
idea  of  exchanging  autocrats.  Therefore,  when  Henry  VIII.  desired 
a  right  of  veto  in  matters  of  doctrine,  by  demanding  that  all  the 
canons  or  rules  of  the  Church  should  be  submitted  for  his  approval, 
Convocation  at  once  resisted  his  claim.  It  was  willing  that  all  old 
canons,  not  belonging  to  matters  of  faith,  should  be  examined  by  a 
competent  committee  as  to  whether  they  contained  anything  contrary 
to  the  peace  of  the  realm  or  the  honour  of  the  king ; — and  rightly  sc/ 
because  it  is  possible  to  conceive  that  a  great  community  like  the 
National  Church  might  occasionally  be  induced  to  promulgate  lawe 
for  itself,  that  would  prove  detrimental  to  other  national  interests. 
Convocation  also  agreed  that  no  new  canons  should  be  imposed 
without  the  royal  assent ;  and  that  letters  of  business  should 
be  procured  from  the  Crown  before  it  proceeded  to  formu- 
late any  new  ones  ;  but  it  was  clearly  understood  that  Con- 
vocation infused  to  surrender  the  Church's  ancient  privilege  of 
decreeing  its  own  rites  and  ceremonies.  These  decisions  were  afterwards 
embodied  in  a  statute  (25  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  19)  called  '  The  Submission 
of  the  Clergy.'  There  are  other  misconceptions  abroad  respecting 
this  period.  The  statute  (25  Hen.  VIII. ,c.  20)  forbidding  payment  of 
first  fruits  to  Borne,  and  the  statute  (25  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  21)  forbidding 
the  issue  of  papal  bulls  in  England  which  had  been  thought  necessary 
for  the  consecration  of  a  bishop,  are  often  quoted  as  if  they  trans- 
ferred from  the  bishop  of  Rome  to  the  English  king  the  power  of 
appointing  new  bishops.  But  they  did  not  create  any  new  power. 
They  merely  restored  an  ancient  prerogative  that  dated  from  the 
times  of  the  Heptarchy,  when  it  was  necessary  for  the  safety  of  a 
missionary  bishop  that  he  should  have  the  protection  and  licence  of 
the  Crown  to  work  in  a  given  area.  The  prerogative  had  been  lost 
by  Henry  I.  and  King  John,  when  the  election  of  bishops  was 
nominally  vested  in  the  cathedral  chapters ;  but  chapter  elections 
were  never  more  than  nominal,  for  they  had  always  been  forced  to 
elect  either  the  papal  or  the  royal  nominee.  (See  Vol.  I.,  p.  202). 
The  last  bulls  received  in  England  were  those  relating  to  the  con- 
secration of  Archbishop  Cranmer.  Henceforth  the  bishops  had  to 
take  out  commissions  from  the  king ;  and  among  those  who  did  so 
were  Bishops  Gardiner,  Bonner,  and  Tonstall,  who  subsequently 
opposed  the  progress  of  reforming  measures.  The  commissions 
received  by  bishops  from  the  king  distinguished  in  terms  between  the 
divine  authority  bestowed  through  ordination  and  the  power  of 
jurisdiction  apart  from  the  purely  spiritual  office,  which  the  king 
alone  may  give.1 

1  See  Institution  of  Christian  Man  (drawn  up  A.D.  1637  by  a  commission  com- 
prising all  the  bishops  and  twenty-five  other  learned  clergy)  wherein  jurisdiction  is 
understood  to  be  punitive,  such  as  excommunication  ;  delegativt,  as  giving  clergy 
control  over  parishes  ;  and  legislative,  such  as  making  canons. 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY.  35 

6.  Foreigrn  Influences. — We  must  now  refer  briefly  to  con- 
tinental reforms  that  indirectly  influenced  those  in  England.  All 
Europe  was  ringing  with  horror  at  the  shameless  traffic  in  indulgences, 
called  by  Erasmus  '  the  crime  of  false  pardons,'  which  a  man  named 
Tetzel  was  then  hawking  in  the  pope's  name.  Princes  were  offered 
and  accepted  a  share  in  the  proceeds  for  allowing  him  to  trade  with 
them  in  their  dominions  ;  although  there  were  honest  rulers  like  the 
Elector  Frederick  of  Saxony,  who  declined  to  assist  in  such  shameless 
defrauding  of  their  people.  In  the  dominions  of  Duke  Frederick  lived 
the  fearless  friar,  Martin  Luther,  who  nailed  upon  the  door  of  All 
Saints'  Church,  Wittenberg,  a  long  list  of  objections  to  the  trade, 
which  set  the  Western  World  ablaze  with  controversy.  He 
followed  this  up  with  a  pamphlet  against  papal  doctrine,  entitled, 
The  Babylonish  Captivity  of  the  Church.  In  1520  the  pope  issued  a 
bull  declaring  Luther  a  dangerous  heretic,  and  ordered  Duke 
Frederick  to  deliver  him  over  to  the  papal  courts  for  trial.  The  duke 
took  counsel  of  Erasmus  before  taking  action  ;  and  the  latter,  while 
objecting  to  the  violent  language  of  the  hot-tempered  Luther,  advised 
the  duke  to  protect  him.  But  Luther  could  not  be  gentle.  He  flung 
down  the  gauntlet  of  defiance  by  publicly  burning  the  bull  ;  and  with 
it  a  complete  set  of  the  Roman  canon-law  books,  in  token  of  hii 

conviction      that      Germany  |        ~~"     — f 

should  be  free  from  the  ' 
pope's  jurisdiction.  The  right 
of  National  Churches  to  in- 
dependent self  -  government 
was  everywhere  becoming  an 
accepted  necessity,  but  there 
were  different  opinions  as  to 
how  it  should  be  obtained. 
Those  who  followed  Martin 
Luther  adopted  revolutionary 
methods.  In  England  it  was 
obtained  by  firm  adhesion  to 
the  Constitution  and  ancient 
customs.  A  significant  sign 
of  the  importance  attached 
to  Luther's  proceedings  ap- 
pears in  the  fact  that  Henry 
VIII.  wrote  a  book  against 
the  '  Babylonish  Captivity ' 
which  appeared  in  August 
1521.  It  defended  papal 
authority  as  of  Divine  origin, 
and  so  pleased  the  pope,  to  AiAtuis  LUTHES. 

whom  it  was  presented,  that  in  a  special  consistory  the  title  of 
Defender  of  the  Faith  was  solemnly  conferred  upon  the  king ;   a 


36  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ^/V 

title  which  his  successors  have  since  retained,  though  from  different 
motives.  Luther  at  once  replied  in  violent  terms  to  his  royal 
antagonist,  and  was  controverted  in  turn  by  Bishop  Fisher  and  Sir 
Thomas  More,  whose  books  did  much  to  prevent  their  authors  from 
accepting  subsequent  repudiations  of  papal  jurisdiction.  This  con- 
troversy was  accompanied  by  public  burnings  in  England  of  Lutheran 
books  by  the  authority  of  Wolsey  ;  a  circumstance  often  stated  to  his 
discredit,  when  really  it  was  proof  of  his  moderation.  For  he  had  been 
urged  to  promote  repressive  measures  against  the  persons  of  those  who 
accepted  Lutheran  ideas,  which  must  have  resulted  in  the  deaths  of 
many,  but  as  he  considered  that  an  ostentatious  destruction  of  their 
writings  would  be  a  sufficient  warning  he  altogether  declined  to 
proceed  to  extremities.  Lutheranism  did  not  take  root  in  this 
country.  After  the  repudiation  of  papal  interference  an  attempt  was 
made  through  Cranmer's  influence  (1533)  to  Lutheranize  the  Church  ; 
but  it  failed  because  the  German  teachers,  whom  he  had  invited, 
made  so  many  objections  to  the  English  customs.  Their  propositions 
for  reforming  the  Church  were  controverted  by  the  king,  and  thus 
retarded  rather  than  assisted  the  removal  of  abuses.  It  was  natural 
that  other  countries  besides  England  should  produce  reformers,  and 
they  were  very  numerous  in  the  Swiss  cantons,  of  whom  Ulrick 
Zivingle  was  the  chief  ;  and  in  Geneva,  where  they  were  led  by  Jchn 
Calvin.  Both  these  men  held  novel  ideas  respecting  Holy  Commu- 
nion, and  both  quarrelled  with  Luther.  Neither  cared  a  whit  for 
Apostolic  traditions  or  saw  any  virtue  in  the  Church's  historic 
continuity.  Calvin  made  himself  civil  and  religious  dictator  of 
Geneva,  and  banished  all  who  dared  dispute  his  dogmas  ;  one  man, 
Servetus,  being  burned  for  venturing  to  differ  from  him  on  a  point 
of  doctrine.  Calvin's  religious  system  was  set  forth  in  a  book  called 
The  Institntea,  published  by  him  in  1536.  Until  these  new  reformers 
had  grown  too  powerful  to  be  resisted  they  were  greatly  persecuted, 
especially  in  France.  Through  Cranmer's  influence  many  were 
allowed  to  take  refuge  in  this  country.  We  must  admit  that  the 
advice  and  researches  of  the  learned  among  them  were  of  immense 
value  to  our  Church  in  its  work  of  self -reform,  because  of  their 
experience  in  the  doctrinal  contests  of  their  time  ;  and  we  cannot 
help  perceiving  that  English  hospitality  to  them  was  repaid  with 
interest  when  reactionary  parties  held  the  field  ;  but  nevertheless 
it  is  clear  that  the  foreign  reformers  introduced  many  revolutionary 
ideas,  which  were  subversive  of  all  rule  and  authority,  whether  in 
Church  or  Realm  ;  and  that  their  objections  to  alterations  and  trans- 
lations subsequently  made  in  the  service  books,  because  their  own 
suggestions  were  not  in  every  case  accepted,  proved  an  ultimate 
thorn  in  the  side  of  the  national  clergy ;  for  the  foreigners  at 
once  proceeded  to  sow  the  seed  of  Nonconformity,  which  after- 
wards bore  much  wild  fruit  in  the  shape  of  political  and  religiou§ 
dissensions. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH  HISTORY.  3f 

7.  Translations  of  the  Scriptures. — Reference  was  made  ia 
our  first  volume  to  early  and  partial  translations  of  the  Scriptures, 
and  to  Wycliffe's  complete  version.  But  Wycliffe's  Bible  had  only 
been  distributed  in  manuscript  portions,  and  was  full  of  obsolete 
phrases  unintelligible  to  the  16th  century,  while  it  contained  aa 
unorthodox  preface  that  effectually  prevented  its  acceptance  by  tha 
clergy.  The  Greek  Testament  of  Erasmus  has  also  been  alluded  to. 
Their  results  must  now  be  considered.  The  constant  appeals  to 
Scripture  which  marked  the  controversies  of  Henry's  reign  made  th« 
nation  earnestly  desire  a  better  knowledge  of  its  contents.  A 
University  scholar,  William  Tyndall,  asked  the  bishop  of  London 
(Fitz  James)  to  grant  him  facilities  to  make  an  English  translation 
(1523),  but  his  application  came  at  the  time  when  Luther's  writings 
were  being  suppressed,  and  the  project  was  coldly  received.  So 
Tyndall  went  to  Hamburg,  where  he  secretly  translated  the  New 
Testament.  It  was  printed  at  Worms  by  Schoeffer,  A.D.  152(v 
Fifteen  thousand  copies  were  produced,  smuggled  into  England  ia 
bales  of  merchandise,  and  sold  at  a  cheap  rate  all  over  the  country. 
Portions  of  the  Old  Testament  appeared  four  years  later.  The  clergy 
feared  that  the  indiscriminate  and  undirected  perusal  of  aa 
admittelly  inaccarate  version  of  the  Scriptures  might  produce  lament- 
able consequences,  and  the  new  bishop  of  London  (Cnthbert  Tonstall) 
bought  up  all  the  copies  he  could  find  and  publicly  burnt  them. 
rb.2  money  so  expended  served  to  furnish  Tyndall  with  the  means  for 
new  editions.  Sir  Thomas  More  exposed  the  imperfections  and 
inaccuracies  of  the  new  -translation,  in  a  pamphlet  filled  with 
unmitigated  abu>e  ;  to  which  T  vndall  replied  in  phrases  to  correspond. 
Strong  language  was  the  order  of  that  day.  Had  Tyndall  kept  his 
great  work  out  of  the  mire  of  controversy  he  would  have  been  a  hero 
Indeed,  for  his  English  version  formed  the  basis  of  all  subsequent 
translations.  Previous  versions  had  boen  made  from  Latin  trans- 
lations, as  was  Wvcliffe's  ;  but  Tyndall,  though  indebted  to  Wycliffe's 
Bible  for  most  of  his  phrases,  was  the  first  to  attempt  an  English 
translation  of  the  New  Testament  out  of  the  original  Greek,  and  th« 
greater  portion  of  the  Old  Testament  from  Hebrew.  But  he  seriously 
weakened  the  usefulness  of  his  labours  by  adding  a  running  com- 
mentary in  the  margins,  containing  many  strong  aspersions  upon 
contemporary  abuses.  Had  he  left  the  Sacred  Word  to  tell  its  own 
tale  in  the  mother  tongue  all  might  have  been  well.  As  it  was,  h« 
gave  his  adversaries  an  excuse  to  destroy  him,  for  after  a  rigorous 
Imprisonment  the  Germans  burnt  him  in  1536.  The  English  clergy 
repeatedly  disclaimed  any  desire  to  withhold  the  Scriptures  from  the 
people ;  and  declared  that  their  only  object  was  to  prevent  the 
distribution  of  inaccurate,  seditious,  or  unorthodox  editions.  When 
it  became  clear  that  the  country  would  not  be  satisfied  without  a 
rernacular  translation  of  the  Bible.  Convocation  earnestly  pleaded 
with  the  king  that  the  English  bishops  should  make  a  new  translation 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES 


that  could  be  issued  with  authority  (1534").  Meanwhile  several  other" 
private  versions  were  issued.  The  first  of  them  was  by  Mile*  Coverdale, 
who  translated  from  St.  Jerome's  4th  century  Latin  version,  known 
as  the  Vulgate,  which  had  long  been  used  in  England  ;  taking  much 
English  phraseology  from  Wycliffe  and  Tyndall.  This  did  not  receive 
the  express  sanction  of  Convocation  or  the  Crown,  but  it  was  allowed 
to  be  freely  sold,  and  may  be  considered  the  first  English  Bible.  It 
dates  from  1535.  Two  years  later  Matthews'  Bible  was  published, 
which  was  merely  a  reprint  of  Tyndall' a  as  far  as  that  went,  the  rest 
being  supplied  from  Coverdale's.  This  version  received  the  king's 
assent,  but  Convocation  objected  to  its  inaccuracies  The  variations 
in  these  different  editions  clearly  indicate  the  need  of  some  more 


BEADING   THE   BIBLK    IN  THE  CRYPT   OF   OLD   ST.   PAUL'S. 

careful  and  scholarly  rendering.  Eventually  the  bishops,  who  ha*l 
been  engaged  in  the  work  for  live  years,  issued  in  1539  what  is  known 
as  the  Great  Bible,  and  this  was  ordered  to  be  set  up  in  all  the 
churches.  Because  of  the  great  cost  incurred  in  producing  and 
printing  a  bible  in  those  days,  especial  care  was  taken  for  the 
safety  of  copies  by  chaining  them  to  oak  desks  or  stone  walls. 
Our  illustration  gives  an  idea  of  the  desire  for  knowledge  of  the 
truth  that  then  pervaded  all  classes  in  the  land.  Very  few 
could  read,  but  all  could  listen.  The  explicit  terms  of  the  pro- 
clamation which  granted  and  thus  provided  an  open  Bible  in  the 
vernacular  will  well  bear  repetition.  Every  parish  priest  was 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY.  39 

thereby  ordered  to  '  provide  one  book  of  the  whole  Bible,  of  the 
largest  volume,  in  English,  u  :iie  same  set  up  in  some 

convenient  place  within  the  church,  whereat  the  parishioners  may 
most  commodiously  resort  to  the  same,  and  read  it,'  and  the  clergy 
were  further  instructed  to  '  discourage  no  man,  privily  or  openly, 
from  reading  the  same  Bible,  bat  to  expressly  provoke,  stir,  and 
exhort  every  person  to  read  the  same,  as  that  which  is  the  very 
lively  Word  of  God.'  In  1543  the  orderly  reading  of  Scripture  in 
the  Church  services  on  Sundays  and  holydays,  a  lesson  from  the  Old 
and  a  lesson  from  the  New  Testament,  was  ordered  by  Convocation. 
When  the  Scriptures  in  English  were  thus  authorised  and  publicly 
read,  there  was  less  reason  to  find  fault  with  the  statute  (34  &  35 
Hen.  Till.,  c.  1)  which  prohibited  all  annotated  copies  of  the  Bible, 
guch  as  Tyndall's.  from  being  circulated  or  read. 

S.  Doctrinal  Reforms.— Next  to  the  Bible  in  importance 
comes  the  Liturgy,  or  '  Service  Book,'  which  comprises  and  limits 
the  doctrines  and  worship  of  the  Church.  The  Latin  service  books 
already  referred  to  (Tol.  I.,  p.  155)  had  been  so  altered  by  additions 
and  complication  that  great  inconveniense  was  felt  in  using  them  ; 
and  the  same  causes  which  required  an  English  Bible,  demanded 
that  the  public  worship  of  the  Church  should  be  offered  in  a  language 
"  understanded  of  the  people."  Just  as  there  had  been  portions  of 
the  Scripture  ir.  the  earliest  times,  so  had  there  been 

?h  books  of  prayer  for  private  use  called  Primers,  and  interlined 
translations  of  the  ancient  "Uses";  although  the  service? 
always  been  said  or  sung  in  Latin.  The  book  for  the  ordinary  daily 
services  was  called  the  JSreriary,  and  that  for  the  Communion 
Service  the  Missal ;  the  Ordination  Services  formed  a  separate  book 
called  the  Pontifical,  besides  which  there  was  the  Manual,  con- 
taining the  Occasional  Offices  whi«h  a  priest  could  perform.  Our 
own  Book  of  Common  Prayer  is  practically  a  compilation  from  these 
different  books,  simplifying  their  arrangement  and  omitting  the 
erroneous  accretions  which  were  introduced  after  the  Norman 
conquest.  So  early  as  the  year  1516,  and  again  in  1531  and  1542.  Con- 
vocation revised  the  Sarum  Sreriarybj  simplifying  the  rubrics  and 
arranging  for  the  orderly  reading  of  all  the  Scriptures.  In  1542 
Convocation  appointed  a  committee  to  thoroughly  revise  the  same 
and  translate  it  into  English,  omitting  all  references  to  the  bishop 
of  Rome  which  had  crept  in,  and  abolishing  the  memorials  of 
mediaeval  saints.  The  work  was  not  concluded  until  the  beginning 
of  the  nest  reign,  but  a  portion  of  their  labours  appeared  in  1543-4 
when  the  Litany  was  published  in  English  and  ordered  to  be  sung  in 
all  churches  every  Sunday  and  Holy-day.  This  edition  of  the  Litany 
was  disfigured  by  the  petition  to  be  delivered  '•  from  the  bishop  of 
Eome  and  his  detestable  enormities."  The  leading  spirit  of  these 
revisions  was  Archbishop  Cranmer ;  to  whom  was  due  also  the 


40  ILLUSTRATED    NOT£b    ON 

direction  of  the  revision  of  the  Scriptures,  known  as  the  Great  B'.ble, 
from  which  our  Prayer  Book  Psalms  are  taken.  There  need  not  be 
any  mistake  respecting  the  motives  which  guided  Convocation  in 
their  liturgical  revisions  ;  for  the  statute  (25  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  21),  which 
for  bade  the  issue  of  papal  bulls  in  England  disclaimed  any  intention 
w  to  decline  or  vary  from  the  congregation  of  Christ's  Church  in 
anything  concerning  the  very  [true]  Articles  of  the  Catholic 
Church."  The  communion  by  doctrine,  devotion,  and  discipline 
with  all  true  adherents  of  apostolic  faith  and  primitive  Church 
customs,  has  always  been  the  aim  and  object  of  English  Churchmen. 
They  have  not  always  been  able  to  prevent  the  introduction  of  errors 
and  abuses,  and  in  their  efforts  to  shake  them  off  not  always  free 
from  recklessness,  but  throughout  all  changes  and  chances 
they  have  been  providentially  enabled  to  preserve  inviolate  the 
fundamental  principles  of  catholic  and  apostolic  truth.  To  allay 
the  fears  of  such  as  thought  events  were  moving  too  fast, 
Convocation  drew  up  (A.D.  1536)  Ten  Articles,  five  doctrinal 
and  five  ceremonial,  which  controverted  extreme  opinions  of 
Reformers  and  Komanizers  alike,  and  asserted  the  Bible  and 
three  Creeds  to  be  the  only  true  basis  of  faith  ;  and  the  first 
four  Catholic  Councils  to  be  the  only  authority  for  Church 
discipline  ;  thus  going  back  at  a  bound  to  the  decision  of  Theodore's 
synod  at  Hatfield,  A.D.  680.'  These  Ten  Articles  were  afterwards 
embodied  in  a  book  of  instruction  for  the  laity,  entitled  "  The  Insti- 
tution of  a  Christian  Man,"  and  commonly  called  the  Bishop' »  J3ook; 
which  was  drawn  up  at  Cranmer's  Lambeth  residence  and  signed  by 
all  the  dignitaries.  It  contained  admirable  expositions  of  the  Creed, 
the  Lord's  Prayer  and  the  Ten  Commandments  ;  and  statements 
respecting  other  subjects  that  were  then  matters  of  controversy, 
which  were  considerably  modified  later  on. 

9.  The  Reactionary  Party.8 — Party  spirit  in  those  days  ran 
higher  than  it  does  now.  Moreover  the  religious  question  was 
almost  the  only  one  that  the  country  cared  for.  So  that  all  the 
political  influence  of  governments  and  aspirants  to  office  was  ranged 
in  opposing  forces  which  did  battle  for  or  against  the  reforming* 
principles.  Convocation  itself  was  very  equally  divided,  and  when 
a  new  Parliament  met  in  1539,  followed  by  a  reconstructed  Privy 
Council  which  promoted  only  anti-reformers  to  Church  offices 
carrying  seats  in  Convocation,  those  who  were  suspected  of  religious 
opinions  which  had  produced  such  sad  revolutions  abroad  were 
treated  with  considerable  severity.  The  party  opposed  to  further 
reforms  comprised  the  extremists  who  believed  in  papal  supremacy 
and  whose  sympathies  for  Queen  Catharine,  Bishop  Fisher,  and  Sir 
Thomas  More,  made  them  revengeful  ;  those  also  who  would  have 

1  Bee  Vol.  I.,  p.  89.    2  See.  however.  Stubbs'  Const.  Tlist.  ill.,  p.  119. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY. 


been  content  with  the  royal  supremacy,  bat  who  deprecated  the 
pitiless  dissolution  of  monasteries  which  we  shall  treat  of  in  the  next 
chapter;  and  those 
who,  though  prepared 
to  accept  the  '  Ten 
Articles,  objected  to 
the  Continental  re- 
formers who  surround- 
ed Archbp.  Cranmer. 
Thus  a  reaction  began ; 
and  after  the  Luther- 
an divines  had  in- 
discreetly denounced 
the  English  cere- 
monial, the  Duke  of 
Norfolk  succeeded  in 
passing  through  Par- 
liament the  Statute 
of  the  Six  Article* 
(31  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  14) 
containing  terrible 
penal  provisions  on 
six  points  of  doctrine 
and  discipline ;  the 
effect  of  which  was 
to  restore  temporari- 
ly transubstantiation, 
celibacy  of  the  clergy, 
private  masses,  com- 
munion in  one  kind, 
and  compulsory  con- 
fession ;  and  to  de- 
clare that  although 
the  monasteries  had 
been  dissolved,  the 
vows  of  their  late  inmates  were  still  binding.  That  a  majority  ia 
Convocation  was  induced  to  sanction  this  statute  proves  that  there 
was  a  growing  aversion  to  the  rapidity  of  recent  changes.  The 
severity  of  the  Six  Article  Statute  was  intentional.  Its  bark  WM 
worse  than  its  bite.  Men  were  afraid  to  offend,  and  therefore  it* 
penalties  were  seldom  enforced.  Accounts  as  to  persons  suffering 
under  it  are  very  conflicting.  In  1543  its  provisions  were  made  less 
stringent  and  in  1547  it  was  repealed  altogether.  But  while  it  was  ia 
force  great  terror  seized  many  of  the  bishops  and  clergy.  Bishops 
Latimer  and  Shaxton  resigned  their  sees,  and  were  placed  in  the 
custody  of  bishops  of  opposite  opinions  ;  while  Cranmer  was  the  sub- 
ject of  many  conspiracies  and  had  to  separate  from  his  wife.  A- 


42  ILLUSTRATED   NOT£S    ON 

monarch  is  generally  credited  with  the  good  that  arises  during  his 
reign,  even  though  his  sanction  may  have  been  unwillingly  given  ; 
but  the  religious  progress  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII.  is  by  no 
means  due  exclusively  lo  him.  It  was  the  effort  made  by  the 
Church  to  satisfy  tkc  cravings  of  her  children.  The  Church 
was  still  a  power  in  the  land.  Her  prerogatives  were  not  yet 
assailed,  and  although  Convocation  was  often  unduly  pressed  by  the 
king  to  hurry  on  the  work  of  reform,  neither  Parliament  nor  king 
would  then  have  dared  to  alter  anything  without  its  sanction.  And 
the  Clergy  through  Convocation,  did  not  consent  to  any  changes 
that  would  impair  its  apostolic  fellowship  or  Catholic  doctrine,  its 
ministerial  succession,  or  the  validity  of  its  sacramental  ordinances. 
It  was  doubtless  owing  to  Cranmer's  moderation  and  meekness,  which 
made  him  bend  to  storms  while  others  would  be  ruined  by  resisting 
them,  that  the  Church  was  safely  steered  through  the  rest  of 
Henry's  reign  ;  and  the  action  of  those  who  would  have  restored  the 
papal  domination  rendered  ineffectual.  Henry  VIII.  died  on  the 
28th  Jan.,  1547,  having  previously  devised  the  succession  by  will  to 
his  son  Edward  ;  and,  in  default  of  heirs,  to  his  daughters  Mary  and 
Elizabeth  in  order.  As  Edward  was  but  ten  years  old,  Henry  willed 
that  sixteen  executors  should  form  a  council  of  regency  until  the 
iad  was  eighteen  years  of  age.  Henry  had  all  along  striven  to 
preserve  the  balance  of  parties,  and  he  nominated  to  this  council 
pronounced  upholders  of  each  class  of  religious  opinion,  obviously 
intending  that  there  should  be  as  little  change  as  possible.  But  it 
was  found  that  the  reforming  party  predominated  and  obtained 
the  h-'ghest  offices.  (See  page  61). 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

DISSOLUTION  OF  THE  MONASTERIES. 

"  The  tapers  shall  bo  quenched,  the  belfries  mute, 
And,  'mid  their  choirs  unroofed  by  selfish  rage, 
The  warbling  wren  shall  find  a  leaiy  cage. 
****** 

Yet  some  noviciates  of  the  cloistral  shade, 

Or  chained  by  vows,  with  undissembled  glee 

Tne  warrant  hail — exulting  to  be  free." — Wordsworth. 

1.  Pre-Norman  and  Post-Norman  Religious  Houses.— 
The  peculiar  and  extensive  character  of  the  Dissolution  of  Monas- 
teries, and  the  issues  involved,  require  special  and  separate  treatment. 
The  usual  plan  of  explaining  their  suppression  is  to  point  out  that 
those  of  small  income  and  few  inmates  were  first  assailed,  and  after- 
wards the  trreatcr  and  richer  ones.  This  method  is  chronologically 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY. 


accurate  and  easily  understood,  but  it  omits  important  considerations 
which  should  not  be  overlooked.  A  sharp  line  of  distinction  ought  to  be 
drawn  between  religious  houses  founded  before  the  Norman  Conquest, 
or  reconstituted  at  the  beginning  of  that 
epoch,  and  those  which  were  introduced 
in  and  after  the  12th  century.1  Gene- 
rally speaking,  and  with  few  exceptions, 
the  monasteries  founded  before  the  12th 
century  recognised  the  right  of  the 
bishop  to  visit  and  correct  their  houses. 
And  it  must  be  remembered  that  all 
such  earlier  foundations  belonged  either 
to  the  ancient  Benedictine  Order  or  to 
the  Early  Norman  developments  of  it 
known  as  the  '  Augustinian '  and  '  Clu- 
niac '  orders,*  and  we  may  class  these' 
more  ancient  foundations  under  the 
generic  title  of  National  Monasteries, 
seeing  that  they  submitted  to  the  j  uris- 
diction  of  the  English  bishops.  Many 
of  them  had  a  rich  heritage  of  historic 
memories.  Some,  like  Glastonbury,  had 
an  uninterrupted  existence  from  obscure 
Celtic  ages ;  and  others,  like  Canterbury 
and  Lindisfarne,  from  the  earliest  Saxon 
times.  Their  life  and  traditions  were 
bound  up  with  the  national  history, 
while  a  thousand  recollections  endeared 
them  to  gentle  and  simple  alike.  Some 
were  for  men,  such  as  Edmondsbury 
and  St.  Albans  ;  and  others  were  homes 
for  gentlewomen  and  schools  for  young 
ladies,  as  at  Gods  tow  Nunnery  in  Ox- 
fordshire. But  after  the  year  1129, 
when  the  Cistercian  Order  came  to 
Surrey,  very  few,  if  any,  Benedictine 
houses  were  founded.  The  bishop  of 
Rome  was  then  beginning  to  exercise 
BENEDICTINE  NUN.  direct  authority  in  England,  and  the 
Cistercians  were  under  his  immediate  control.  Their  settlement  in 
Britain  received  his  express  sanction — not  merely  that  they  might 
introduce  a  more  severe  method  of  religious  life — but  chiefly  that 
they  might  help  forward  papal  aggrandisement.  The  same  is  true 
of  the  Carthusian  Monks  who  commenced  to  settle  here  in  1181,  and 
of  the  numerous  smaller  religious  orders  subsequently  founded ; 


7ol.  I.,  pp.  179-186. 


S  Vol.  I.,  pp.  151  an  I  17&. 


44  ILL  USTRA  TED  NOTES  ON 

especially  the  Mendicant  Friars.1  These  new  religious  orders  com* 
menced  by  obtaining  special  privileges  from  the  bishop  of  Rome,  by 
which  they  could  claim  exemption  from  English  episcopal  jurisdic- 
tion, and  ended  by  setting  up  their  houses  all  over  the  land.  Thej 
soon  excited  the  jealousy  of  the  earlier  foundations  (many  of  whom 
were  led  to  similar  exemption  in  order  to  preserve  their  prestige), 
and  ultimately  they  brought  the  whole  conventual  system  into 
discredit.  It  is  true  that  good,  learned,  and  patriotic  men  were  often 
found  among  these  later  orders,  but  speaking  generally  we  must  class 
the  '  post-Norman '  celibate  foundations  under  the  generic  title  of 
foreign  Monasteries.  Visitors  to  any  '  minster '  or  '  abbey  '  church,  or 
to  the  ruins  of  such,  should  always  enquire  which  order  of  monks  wer« 
settled  there,  and  what  was  the  date  of  its  original  foundation.  The 
answers  will  help  to  explain  why  some  are  still  used  by  the  National 
Church  and  others  not.  It  cannot  be  a  mere  coincidence  that  the  monas- 
tery churches  still  in  use  are,  almost  invariaoly  of  pre-Norman  origin, 
and  generally  of  the  Benedictine  order  ;  the  onlyexceptious  beine  the 
public  portions  of  churches  belonging  to  foreign  monasteries  which 
had  supplanted  &  pre-Norman  parish  church.  %  Apart  from  the  purely 
patriotic  feeling,  great  dissatisfaction  had  been  aroused  against  the 
conventual  life  on  account  of  the  doctrinal  abuses  already  referred 
to,  which  were  protected  chiefly  and  most  offensively  by  the  celibate 
orders.  Their  rules  were  severe  enough,  had  they  been  properly 
observed,  but  the  spirit  of  them  was  constantly  violated.  As  time 
went  on  each  Order  became  worldly,  and  its  members,  instead  of 
leading  secluded  lives  apart  from  the  busy  haunts  of  men,  mixed 
freely  in  society  ;  and  so  the  chief  reason  of  their  foundation  waa 
annulled.  There  is  no  need  to  recount  in  detail  the  misdeeds 
recorded  against  them  ;  suffice  to  say  that  charges  of  immorality, 
hypocrisy,  and  luxurious  living  were  proved  against  the  majority 
up  to  the  hilt,  and  not  denied.  If  vows  of  chastity,  self-denial, 
and  poverty  could  not  furnish  safeguards  against  breaches  of 
the  moral  law  they  deserved  to  be  done  away.  The  acknow- 
ledged bad  character  of  many  who  professed  excessive  piety 
brought  all  religion  into  discredit ;  and  the  notorious  scan- 
dals to  which  they  gave  rise,  combined  with  the  attempts 
made  by  'foreign'  nouses  to  de-nationalise  the  ancient  Church, 
made  all  true-hearted  Englishmen  hail  with  satisfaction  the 
various  Acts  of  Parliament  by  which  the  land  was  rid  of 
their  evil  influences.  The  celibate  system  was  condemned  as  a 
diseased  limb  of  the  Church,  needing  to  be  cut  off  to  ensure  the 
safety  of  its  main  trunk.  We  record  its  decay  with  much  regret ; 
because  the  system  had  been  productive  of  much  that  was  good  and 
useful  in  earlier  times,  without  which  our  Church  would  have  had  few 
good  works  to  boast  of  then.  It  had  been  a  moat  efficient  missionary 

1  Vol.  I.,  p.  »13 


f.XGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  *• 

Agency,  and  an  exceedinsly  useful  means  of  consolidating  the  Church. 
A  niiehty  army  of  historians,  theologians,  teachers,  and  sincer* 
Christians  had  been  trained  in  it ;  and  it  waa  the  foster-mother  ol 
Art,  Literature,  and  Science.  As  architects,  carvers  in  wood,  stone, 
»nd  metal,  workers  in  mosaic,  and  painters  unon  glass,  the  nconks 
were  once  unrivalled.  Their  houses  had  been  the  centres  of  civilisa- 
tion, social  intercourse,  hospitality  and  safe  shelter  in  days  when  roads 
were  bad,  hotels  unkm  irn,  and  districts  thinly  populated  ;  and  their 
relief  of  the  sick  and  indigent  was  liberal  and  extensive.  Many  mast 
have  regretted  that  these  invaluable  services  should  have  to  cease  ;  but 
monasticism  had  come  to  be  looked  upon  as  worn  out  and  effete,  chiefly 
through  its  own  most  grievous  fault,  and  it  had  to  pay  the  penalty 
of  its  follies.  Fortunately  the  system  was  not  necessary  to  the 
Church's  vitality,  nor  was  her  continuous  life  affected  by  the 
suppression.  National  and  anti-national  foundations  alike  were 
overwhelmed  in  the  general  dissolution  ;  but  while  the  '  foreign  ' 
monasteries  were  all  destroyed  absolutely,  so  that  nothing  remains 
of  them  save  here  and  there  a  pile  of  ruined  masonry  (as  in 
the  accompanying  illustration  of  the  Cistercian  abbey  church  *t 
Tintern-on-the-Wye)  to  testify  their  former  grandeur,  many  of  the 
old  pre-Norman  minsters  continued  to  be  used  for  the  services  of  the 
Church  of  England,  as  we  shall  presently  explain. 


TINTERX    ABBEY    RUIXS. 


46  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES   ON 

2.  The  First  Suppression. — There  were  many  precedents  for 
the  suppression  of  religious  houses.  The  Knights  Templars  were 
dissolved  in  the  year  1307  j1  the  Alien  Priories  had  followed  suit  in 
1416  ;*  several  bishops  had  founded  colleges  out  of  monasteries  which 
they  had  thought  right  to  suppress  *,3  and  Cardinal  Wolsey  had  dis- 
solved forty  of  several  orders  in  different  parts  of  England  years 
before  the  general  break-up  of  the  system.  Only  careless  people 
imagine  Henry  VIII.  to  be  the  originator  of  the  plan  by  which  the 
monasteries  were  ruinated.  What  we  may  rightly  assign  to  the 
charge  of  that  king  and  his  agents  is  the  summary  ejectment  of 
monks  and  nuns  from  their  old  homes,  and  the  forcible  alienation  of 
monastic  revenues  to  secular  uses,  without  due  care  and  respect  for 
the  interests  involved.  The  easy  descent  of  unprincipled  men  from 
one  depth  of  iniquity  to  another  is  aptly  illustrated  by  the  increasing 
covetousness  of  those  who  were  responsible  for  the  general  dissolu- 
tion. When  Wolsey  suppressed  any  religious  houses  he  desired  to 
provide  some  more  efficient  means  of  carrying  out  the  good  work 
they  were  supposed  to  do  ;  but  while  his  example  was  followed  in 
the  method  of  suppressing  the  remainder,  the  direction  in  which  the 
revenues  and  estates  were  applied  was  quite  different.  The  work 
began  by  the  appointment  of  a  Royal  commission  to  visit  and  inquire 
into  the  general  character  of  all  monasteries,  especially  as  to 
their  foundation,  the  tenor  of  their  rules,  what  benefices  were 
appropriated  to  them,  and  how '  they  were  served.  Several  houses 
were  at  once  surrendered  to  the  king  by  the  inmates,  which  we  may 
consider  as  an  admission  of  guilt.  The  result  of  the  visitation 
was  a  startling  record  of  mischief  wrought  by  the  monks  and 
friars  in  their  private  and  professional  capacities.  No  doubt  the 
report  was  exaggerated,  but  after  allowing  a  large  margin  for 
the  inventiveness  of  the  commissioners  more  than  enough  remained 
to  demand  immediate  action.  Upon  this  the  Commons  reluctantly 
passed  a  Statute  (27  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  28)  by  which  all  congregations 
of  religious  persons  under  the  number  of  twelve,  or  of  a  less 
annual  value  than  £200,  were  granted  to  the  Crown  absolutely. 
When  this  Act  was  submitted  to  the  House  of  Lords  it  met 
with  no  opposition  from  the  mitred  abbots  and  bishops  ;4  a 
curious  sign  of  the  times.  Provision  was  made  in  the  act  for  pen- 
sioning some  of  the  monks,  and  for  transferring  others  to  "  such 
honourable  and  great  monasteries  of  this  realm,  wherein  good 
religion  is  observed,  as  shall  be  limited  by  the  king."  Some  375 
houses  were  dissolved  under  this  statute ;  their  aggregate  yearly 
revenue  being  £32,000,  and  the  estimated  capital  value  of  their 
buildings,  plate,  and  furniture,  £100,000  more.  The  purchasing 
power  of  money  then  was  about  twelve  times  more  than  it  is  now. 

1  Vol.  I.,  p.  182.        2  See  pace  )5.        3  See  page  16. 

4  The  Houa*  of  Lords  comprised  only  92  peers  at  that  tim«,  including  20  bishops, 
tii'-i  i8  abbot*  tr  ;*r<org,  so  that  the  Spiritual  Lords  had  a  majority. 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY.  47 

Henry  VIII.  was  empowered  by  the  statute  to  refonnd  such  houses 
as  he  thought  fit,  but  it  does  not  appear  that  he  made  much  use  of 
the  privilege.  A  special  department  of  State  was  created  to  deal 
with  the  proceeds  of  the  suppression,  called  the  "  Court  of  Augmenta- 
tion of  the  King's  Revenue"  which  disposed  of  the  buildings  and 
estates  to  the  best  advantage  for  the  king  and  Ms  courtiers ;  but 
nothing  was  reserved  for  religious  or  educational  purposes.  Although 
the  instructions  to  the  commissioners  appointed  to  enforce  the  act 
read  fair  enough,  there  are  very  sad  contemporary  records  of  the 
ruthless  methods  they  adopted  in  despoiling  the  monasteries  of  their 
treasures  and  driving  out  the  inmates.  But  the  commissioners  were 
not  alone  in  this.  Instead  of  receiving  sympathy  the  disturbed 
inmates  found  that  the  people  rejoiced  in  their  fall.  The  peasantry 
readily  assisted  in  destroying  the  buildings,  that  they  might  purchase 
the  contents  and  materials  at  far  less  than  real  value  ;  and  there 
was  a  general  scramble  for  the  spoil.  But  when  the  monks  had  gone 
and  their  houses  were  left  desolate  symptoms  of  regret  began  to  appear. 

3.  The  Pilgrimage  of  G-raoe.— A.p.  1536-7.— A  large  number 
of  the  inmates  welcomed  release  from  their  vows,  and  readily  accepted 
a  secular  life  on  retiring  pensions.  They  saw  that  their  houses  must 
go,  and  knew  they  had  been  hypocritical,  and  they  naturally  made 
the  best  terms  they  could  with  the  commissioners.  But  on  the  other 
hand  there  were  very  maay  who  resisted  the  new  law  ;  and  when  com- 
pulsorily  expelled  revealed  the  '  anti-national '  spirit  of  their  Order 
by  wandering  about  the  country,  especially  in  Yorkshire  and  Lincoln- 
shire, stirring  up  the  people  to  open  rebellion.  They  pretended  to 
be  the  real  defenders  of  Church  and  Realm,  and  clamoured  for 
the  removal  of  the  '  low-born  and  evil  counsellors '  who  had  sug- 
gested the  suppression  to  the  king.  Several  disaffected  nobles  joined 
the  movement,  and  many  more  secretly  aided  it  with  funds,  but  the 
processions  were  everywhere  headed  by  deprived  monks  and  friars, 
carrying  crosses,  banners,  censers,  etc.,  who  strove  to  give  the  re- 
bellion a  religious  character  by  declaring  in  their  speeches  that  the 
'  Grace  of  God  '  was  with  them.  Hence  their  movement  was  called 
the  Pilgrimage  of  Grace.  It  speedily  grew  to  proportions  that 
endangered  the  public  peace,  and  had  to  be  put  down  by  force  of 
arms.  Many  people  were  led  to  believe  the  exaggerated  statements 
of  the  monks  until  they  heard  the  other  side  ;  but  when  the  king 
sent  heralds  through  the  country  to  explain  the  real  causes  which 
made  the  dissolution  needful,  the  rebellion  collapsed  and  the  ring- 
leaders were  executed.  Here  is  an  extract  from  their  proclamation : 
— "As  concerning  points  of  religion  and  observance  the  king  hath 
done  nothing,  but  the  whole  clergy  of  the  provinces  of  York  and 
Canterbury  have  determined  the  same  to  be  conformable  to  GOD'S 
holy  Word  and  Testament."  This  may  help  to  set  at  rest  the  erroneous 
idea  that  Henry  VIII.  was  solely  responsible  for  Church  Reform. 


48  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

There  is  indeed  abundant  evidence  to  show  that  all  reforms  were 
made,  not  by  consent  of  the  national  clergy  only,  but  with  the 
approval  also  of  very  many  sober-minded  and  patriotic  monks.  But 
while  agreeing  that  it  was  righteous  and  wise  to  suppress  evil  cor- 
porations which  were  opposed  to  the  peace  and  dignity  of  the  realm, 
and  to  the  interests  of  religion,  the  Church  had  no  official  share  in 
the  merciless  methods  adopted  by  the  king's  avaricious  agents. 
Included  among  the  rebel  leaders  and  supporters  of  the  '  Pilgrimage 
of  Grace '  were  several  chiefs  of  larger  houses  which  had  long  been 
exempt  by  papal  authority  from  Episcopal  control,  such  as  the 
abbots  of  Whalley  and  Jervaulx,  and  the  priors  of  Woburn  and 
Burlington — all  Cistercian  monasteries.  The  commissioners  arrested 
them  for  treason,  and  they  were  executed.  This  led  to  a  second  and 
more  searching  visitation  among  the  greater  monasteries  which  did 
not  come  within  the  letter  of  the  Act  of  1536.  Now  that  the  system 
could  be  pointed  at  as  harbouring  traitors,  a  way  was  open  for  the 
commissioners  to  intimidate  the  wealthier  bodies  ;  but  it  was  necessary 
to  prepare  the  public  mind  for  their  wholesale  destruction,  lest  a 
worse  rebellion  should  break  out.  This  was  done  by  publicly  exposing 
and  ridiculing  the  artifices  by  which  many  monks  and  friars  had 
deluded  the  simple  and  superstitious  into  making  votive  offerings 
at  the  shrines  in  their  churches.  For  instance,  at  the  shrine  of 
"  Our  Lady  of  Walsingham  "  it  was  given  out  that  some  congealed 
milk  from  the  breasts  of  the  Virgin  might  be  seen — for  a  suitable 
consideration,  of  course — which  was  proved  to  be  "  chalk  or  white- 
lead."  Also  there  was  a  famous  crucifix  at  Boxley,  in  Kent,  that 
had  long  awed  the  credulous  by  bowing  its  head  and  rolling  its  eyes 
when  its  votaries  approached  ;  and  this  became  the  laughing-stock 
of  the  time  when  Hilsey,  bishop  of  Rochester,  had  it  taken  to 
London,  and  the  springs  which  governed  its  movements  laid  bare 
to  the  public  in  St.  Paul's  churchyard.  Many  other  delusions  of 
like  character,  and  the  preposterous  virtues  ascribed  to  relics,  were 
examined  in  plain  common-sense  fashion  until  the  people  were 
angered  at  the  deceptions  practised  on  them.  In  short,  it  was  a 
time  of  education.  The  history  of  Archbishop  Becket  was  rewritten 
in  order  to  show  that  he  was  a  rebel  against  his  king,  and  not  a 
saint  at  all ;  so  that  the  populace  might  not  cry  out  against  the 
demolition  of  his  shrine,  and  the  seizure  of  its  treasures  for  the 
king's  exchequer.  Clever  and  not  over-scrupulous  agents  had  taken 
the  matter  in  hand,  and  they  left  no  stone  unturned  by  whicu 
disgrace  might  fall  upon  the  religious  orders. 

4.  The  Final  Suppression.— It  soon  became  apparent  that 
monasticism  in  England  was  doomed,  and  chiefly  for  the  enrichment 
of  flattering  courtiers  who  gladly  embraced  and  niggardly  retained 
its  possessions.  The  fear  of  being  arrested  for  treason  (coupled  with 
the  hope  of  pensions,  and  offices  in  cathedral  or  parochial  churches 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY. 


for  the  ordained  inmates)  caused  many  abbots  and  priors  to  surrender 
their  houses  to  the  king.  The  commissioners  said  that  they  were 
constantly  in  receipt  of  petitions  from  inmates,  of  both  sexes,  begging 
to  be  dismissed  from  their  vows  and  allowed  to  adopt  the  secular 
habit ;  and  by  the  end  of  1538  very  few  monasteries  continued  to 
flourish.  But  the  Act  of  1536  did  not  contemplate  the  surrender  of 
the  greater  monasteries,  and  discontent  was  beginning  to  be  felt  that 
nothing  was  taking  their  place.  Therefore  it  was  enacted  (31  Hen. 
VIII.,  c.  9),  "that  the  ill  lives  of  those  that  were  called  religious 

made  it  necessary  to  change  their 
houses  to  better  uses,  for  teaching 
the  Word  of  God,  instructing  of 
children.educating  of  clerks  [clergy], 
relieving  of  old  infirm  people,  the 
endowing  of  readers  for  Greek,  and 
Latin,  and  Hebrew,  mending  of 
highways,  and  the  bettering  the  con- 
dition of  the  parish  priests."  By 
this  Act  the  king  was  empowered 
to  found  new  bishoprics  and  assign 
their  limits  and  divisions.  Possibly 
this  statute  was  made  in  good  faith, 
but  changes  in  the  government  be- 
fore it  came  into  operation  prevented 
the  accomplishment  of  its  good  in- 
tent. But  it  served  the  king's  pur- 
pose by  giving  a  show  of  reason  for 
another  statute  (31  Hen,  VIII.,  c.  13) 
confirming  and  regulating  the  trans- 
fers of  larger  monasteries  which 
the  commissioners  had  been  able  to 
acquire  by  voluntary  surrender  or  in 
any  other  way.  By  this  new  law 
the  remaining  monasteries  were 
soon  obtained.  If  priors  and  abbots 
would  not  resign  or  surrender, 
charges  could  easily  be  brought 
against  them  under  one  or  other  of 
the  numerous  treason  statutes  and 
anti-papal  acts — the  character  of  the  evidence  was  not  very  critically 
examined — and  sometimes  men  were  condemned  on  suspicion  and 
unheard.  By  the  dissolution  of  their  houses  the  mitred  abbots  were 
deprived  of  their  seats  in  Parliament,  and  ever  since  that  time  the 
temporal  peers  have  had  the  majonty  in  the  House  of  Lords.  Of 
the  greater  monasteries  suppressed  d"9  followed  the  Benedictine, 
Cluniac,  and  Augustinian  rules  ;  and  276  belonged  to  Cistercian,  Car- 
thusian, and  minor  '  foreign '  orders.  The  voluntary  surrenders  came 

c 


A  CARTHUSIAN. 


60  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

chiefly  from  the  former,  i.e.,  from  the  rulers  of  the  aneient  houses, 
which  were  founded  long  before  the  papal  usurpations,  who  were  in 
favour  of  Church  Reform.  It  is  impossible  for  a  moment  to  justify 
the  barbarous  treatment  meted  out  to  the  Carthusians  by  the 
commissioners.  They  certainly  were  cruelly  dealt  with  according 
to  our  ideas  of  the  value  of  human  life.  But  in  those  days  the  mere 
suspicion  of  treason  was  enough  to  hang  a  man.  and  we  must  not 
forget  that  the  Carthusians  were  staunch  upholders  of  the  papnl 
claims  and  that  their  vows  compelled  them  to  refuse  assent  to  the 
royal  supremacy.  They  were  convicted  for  treason,  just  as  Bishop 
Fisher  and  Sir  Thomas  More  had  been.  It  was  the  same  with  the  Cister- 
cians and  the  Friars.  And  it  is  a  singular  fact  that  no  CartJiv-tian, 
Cistercian,  Friary,  or  other  foreign  monastery  'church  has  ever  been 
used  for  the  worship  of  the  Reformed  Church  of  England,  except  in  one 
or  two  rare  instances  where  the  '  foreign '  order  supplanted  and  appro- 
priated the  old  parish  church,  and  even  there  it  will  be  found  that  the 
essentially  monastic  portion  of  the  church,  i.e.,  the  chancel,  is 
destroyed,  and  that  only  the  nave,  in  which  parishioners  were  always 
allowed  to  worship,  has  been  retained  for  their  use.  Many  readers 
will  at  once  recall  the  great  and  famous  Benedictine  Abbeys  such  as 
Glastonbury,  Beading,  Whitby,  and  a  host  besides  But  the  same  rule 
applies  to  them.  They  had  linked  their  fortunes  with  the  papal- 
supremacy  party  ;  they  had  obtained  from  the  bishop  of  Rome 
exemption  from  the  control  of  their  own  diocesan  ;  and  they  were 
either  convicted  of  complicity  in  the  '  Pilgrimage  of  Grace  '  rebellion, 
or  they  refused  to  obey  the  laws  relating  to  the  king's  supremacy  or 
would  not  afford  the  Commissioners  facilities  for  visiting  monasteries. 
Upon  _  some  such  charge  they  would  be  condemned  by  the  chief 
commissioner,  their  estates  declared  confiscate  and  their  churches 
demolished.  The  second  visitation  of  the  monasteries  was  undertaken 
with  the  express  purpose  of  examining  how  the  inmates  stood  affected 
towards  the  bishop  of  Rome,  and  how  they  promoted  the  king's 
supremacy.1  By  the  end  of  1539  monasticism  had  practically  ceased 
in  England.  The  Knights  Hospitallers  was  the  last  important  order 
dissolved,  and  as  they  resolutely  refused  to  give  up  their  houses  or 
renounce  allegiance  to  Rome  a  special  act  (32  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  24)  was 
obtained  to  make  them.  A  few  specially  exempted  houses  of  good 
repute  were  allowed  to  continue  during  the  life  of  Henry  VIII.,  as 
also  were  several  hospitals  and  monastic  colleges  ;  but  by  virtue  of 
an  act  passed  towards  the  end  of  the  reign  (37  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  4)  they 
also  came  to  an  end.  The  annual  income  of  the  greater  monasteries 
was  said  to  be  £131,607,  and  the  capital  value  of  the  buildings  and 
moveables  over  £400,000. 

5.  The  King's  Vioar-aeneral.— Henry's  chief  agent  in  the 
destruction  of  the  monasteries  was  Thomas  Cromwell — always  to  be 

1  Bii-uet's  Hist,  of  Reformation— Virtue's  Bd.,  p.  108. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY. 


LORIJ    TiiuilAd    CiiuMWilLL. 


distinguished  from  '  Oliver '  Cromwell,  who  lived  more  than  a  century 
later,  and  who,  like  '  Thomas,'  sought  personal  advancement  out  of 

the  wrecks  of  institutions  he  de- 
stroyed. He  had  been  confidential 
secretary  to  Cardinal  Wolsey,  had 
assisted  to  suppress  the  monas- 
teries Wolsey  had  condemned,  and 
therefore  had  the  technical  know- 
ledge requisite  for  the  work. 
Through  his  patron's  influence  he 
obtained  a  seat  in  parliament,  and 
when  the  bill  of  attainder  against 
Wolsay  was  brought  in  he  de- 
fended his  late  master  with  such 
eloquence  that  the  bill  was  thrown 
out.  His  brilliant  advocacy,  and 
opposition  to  the  papal  claims, 
brought  him  rapid  promotion,  and 
he  is  supposed  to  have  framed 
the  statutes  by  which  the  regal 
supremacy  was  restored  to  Eng- 
land. It  was  to  be  expected 
that  Henry  VIII.  would  appoint 
him  to  see  that  their  provisions  were  properly  carried  out.  His 
political  career  depended  on  the  success  of  Church  Reform.  In 
every  way  possible  he  sought  to  make  the  king's  supremacy  popular. 
He  it  was  who  compassed  the  ruin  of  Bishop  Fisher  and  Sir  Thomas 
More,  and  framed  the  terrible  treason  statute  (26  Hen.  VIII., 
c.  13)  under  which  they  were  beheaded  ;  and  which  he  subse- 
quently applied  with  vigour  against  refractory  monks.  When  he 
perceived  that  the  public  would  not  be  satisfied  without  an 
English  Bible  he  employed  Miles  Coverdale  to  correct  and  complete 
Tyndal's  version  by  the  Vulgate,  and  took  care  that  the  king  should 
have  the  honour.  So  exceedingly  clever  a  man,  prompt  and  remorse- 
less in  all  his  dealings,  exactly  suited  Henry  ;  who  delegated  to  him 
his  spiritual  jurisdiction  under  the  title  of  Vicar- General l  (1535),  and 
afterwards  by  a  special  act  (31  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  10)  Lord,  Vicegerent, 
with  precedence  next  to  the  Royal  family.  This  position  gave 
Thomas  Cromwell  autocratic  and  irresponsible  power  over  the  bishops 
and  clergy.  It  was  a  power  similar  to  that  of  extraordinary  legates 
of  the  pope — an  external  authority  imposed  upon  the  long-suffering 
Church  by  its  acknowledged  head  on  earth — only  much  greater, 
because  of  the  ease  by  which  he  could  enforce  the  death  penalty. 
Had  Thomas  Cromwell  lived,  and  retained  those  great  powers,  it  is 

1  "A  title  certainly  norel  and  sounded  ill,  but  there  being  no  evidence  that  It 
wn=  intended  in  a  heterodox  sense,  the  Church  wa=  aot  bound  to  resist  the  tit»e  01 
office."  Palmer's  "  Caarch  of  CiuUt,1'  ToL  1.,  \>.  *oi.  , 


62  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

possible  the  Church  might  have  lost  many  of  its  rights  and  privileges  { 
but  his  time  was  so  occupied  with  dissolving  and  plundering  the 
monasteries  prior  to  his  disgrace  and  death  that  the  Church  suffered 
little  from  his  tyranny  in  other  directions.  His  avarice  and  cruel 
treatment  of  the  monks,  some  of  whom  he  condemned  first  and 
Bent  for  trial  afterwards,  is  in  every  way  reprehensible.  He  enriched 
himself  and  his  friends  by  taking  bribes  on  every  hand  and  shared 
the  spoils  of  many  monasteries  among  his  near  relations.  But  like 
most  of  Henry's  agents  his  career  was  brilliant  and  brief.  He  lost 
the  king's  favour  by  saddling  him  with  an  ugly  wife,  and  Henry 
revenged  himself  by  charging  Thomas,  now  Earl  of  Essex,  with  the 
shortcomings  of  an  unpopular  administration.  A  bill  of  attainder 
brought  him  to  the  block  in  1540,  and  there  were  few  who  pitied  him. 

6.  Distribution  of  Monastic  Estates.— There  are  several 
reasons  why  satisfaction  at  the  fall  of  the  monastic  system  is  not 
unmixed  with  regret,  chief  among  them  being  the  disposition  of 
the  revenues  and  estates  acquired  by  the  Court  of  Augmenta- 
tions. It  was  doubted  at  the  time  whether  the  monks  had 
any  right  to  surrender  absolutely  estates  in  which  they  had  only  a 
life  interest,  and  the  sacred  character  of  the  property  served  to 
increase  the  growing  opposition.  To  appease  the  people  it  was  given 
out  that  the  monastic  revenues  would  prevent  any  more  taxes  being 
levied  ;  but  to  satisfy  the  nobles,  who  knew  better,  the  proceeds  of 
the  plunder  were  shared  among  them.  The  parochial  clergy,  who 
had  been  receiving  vicarial  tithes  from  the  abbeys,  were  told  that 
the  obligations  of  the  monasteries  would  be  transferred  to  the  new 
owners  of  abbey  lands,  but  those  obligations  were  so  often  evaded 
that  many  clergy  were  reduced  to  sore  distress.  It  was  a  far-seeing 
policy  to  make  gifts  of  monastic  possessions  or  sell  them  on  easy 
terms  to  the  nobility,  because  it  became  impossible  for  any  future 
government  to  re'store  the  property  without  impoverishing  its  own 
supporters.  Many  of  the  nobles  had  a  reasonable  claim  to  share  in 
the  distribution,  if  the  determination  to  secularise  the  property  was 
irrevocable,  on  the  ground  that  their  ancestors  had  founded  the 
houses  now  dissolved.  But  if  antiquity  was  to  be  considered  a  valid 
claim,  the  parish  clergy  had  the  oldest  title,  because  most  of  the 
tithes  by  which  the  monasteries  were  maintained  had  belonged  to 
their  parishes  before  even  the  Norman  nobility,  who  alienated  them 
to  the  monasteries,  came  into  the  country.  But  "  in  no  one  instance 
were  the  appropriated  tithes  restored  to  the  parochial  clergy " 
(Hallam).  They  were  transferred  to  the  various  laymen  along  with 
the  monastic  estates,  and  have  ever  since  been  bought  and  sold, 
inherited  and  willed  away,  the  same  as  any  other  species  of  secular 
property.  That  is  how  many  parochial  rectorial  tithes  have  come 
into  the  possession  of  tne  present  lay-impropriators.  One  of  the 
most  notorious  fallacies  ol  modern  times  is  the  notion  that  the 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY. 


63 


property  taken  from  the  monasteries  was  given  by  Henry  VIII.  to 
the  bishops  and  parochial  clergy.  Nothing  of  the  sort  ever  happened. 
Much  of  the  ready-money  receipts  was  squandered  recklessly  by  the 
Ving  upon  his  creatures,  but  the  bulk  of  the  real  estate  passed  into 
the  hands  of  temporal  peers.  Thus  three  rich  abbeys  enabled  Lord 
Russell  to  found  the  earldom  of  Bedford;  seven  others  endowed 
Thomas  Cromwell's  earldom  of  Essex.  The  Duke  of  Norfolk,  who 
disliked  the  dissolution,  was  silenced  by  thirteen  more ;  and  the  king's 
brother-in-law,  Charles  Brandon,  enriched  his  dukedom  of  Suffolk  by 
no  less  than  thirty.  Courtiers  of  lesser  note  obtained  single  monas- 
teries for  their  obsequiousness,  as  when  Xeivtttad  Abbey  was  granted 
to  Sir  John  Bvron.  and  when  a  woman  received  the  revenue  of  a  con- 


NEWSTEAD    ABBKY    UU1SS. 

vent  because  of  her  skill  in  making  the  king's  puddings.  In  order  to 
eet  rid  of  the  obligation  to  pay  pensions  to  the  expelled  monks  and 
friars,  the  new  holders  of  abbey  lands  often  presented  ordained 
celibates  to  benefices  in  their  patronage  that  fell  vacant,  because 
no  beneficed  priest  was  entitled  to  the  pensions.  Many  of  the 
wealthy  city  merchan ts  purchased  the  estates  that  now  glutted  the 
market,  thus  increasing  the  number  of  landed  gentry  ;  and.  on  the 
whole,  apart  from  the  unjust  dealing  towards  the  parochial  churches, 
the  redistribution  of  property  so  long  held  by  an  indolent  and  privi- 
leged class,  and  the  consequent  circulation  of  money,  was  productive 
of  lasting  good  to  the  country  at  large.  But  no  amount  of  beneficial 


34  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

results  can  acquit  the  suppressors  of  wanton  cruelty,  injustice,  and 
sacrilege.     It  has  often  been  said  that  the  laymen  who  received  mon- 
astic estates  were  pursued  by  singular  fatalities.   Dr.  Neale,  e.g.  wrote  : 
"They  tell  us  that  the  Lord  of  Hosts  will  not  avenge  his  own; 
They  tell  us  that  He  careth  not  for  temples  overthrown  : 
Go  I  look  through  England's  thousand  vales,  and  shew  me,  he  that  may, 
The  Abbey  lands  that  have  not  wrought  their  owner's  swift  decay." 
In  this  practical  age  the  fulfilment  of  anathemas  may  be  considered 
superstitious,  and  the  troubles  that  pursued  the  Tudor  nobility  maj 
be  accounted  for  on  quite  different  grounds,  but  it  must  always  seem 
remarkable  that  the  curses  prophesied  in  ancient  times  against  any 
who   should  afterwards  violate  ecclesiastical  revenues,  lands,  and 
buildings,  or  alienate  them  to  secular  uses,  were  fulfilled. 

7.  Monastic  Churches  made  Cathedral.— One  great  result 
of  the  dissolution  was  the  creation  of  six  new  bishoprics — West- 
minster in  1540,  Chester,  Gloucester,  and  Peterborough  in  1541, 
Oxford  and  Bristol  in  1543  ;  the  old  abbey  churches  being  preserved 
as  the  cattedrals.  On  the  translation  of  the  first  bishop  of  West- 
minster to  iNTorwich  that  bishopric  was  suppressed,  thus  leaving  five 
new  sees  which  have  remained  and  flourished  to  this  day.  At  first 
sight  this  looks  like  a  handsome  bonus  to  the  National  Church,  but 
on  closer  consideration  it  appears  but  scant  justice.  Readers  of  the 
early  series  of  '  Illustrated  Notes  '  will  have  noticed  that  the  custom 
of  the  olden  time,  according  to  the  spirit  of  the  ninth  canon  of  the 
cou7icil  of  Hertford,  was  to  augment  the  number  of  bishoprics  aa 
the  faithful  increased.  But  there  had  been  no  increase  in  the 
episcopate  for  centuries.  Every  effort  had  been  made  to  augment 
the  number"  of  monasteries  in  order  to  strengthen  the  position  of  the 
bishop  of  Rome,  and  weaken  the  English  Church  ;  and  although 
mitred  abbots  were  continually  being  created,  there  had  not  been 
any  new  bishoprics  founded  from  the  days  when  Carlisle  received 
that  houour  in  the  reign  of  Henry  I.  In  the  earlier  days  the 
abbots  were  often  selected  to  be  bishops.  When  abbots  came  to  be 
ranked  as  the  social  equal  of  a  bishop  theie  was  no  inducement  to 
proceed  to  the  higher  ecclesiastical  dignity.  The  diocesan  system 
was  therefore  in  danger  of  becoming  extinct  by  inanition.  But 
when  the  monasteries  were  suppressed,  and  the  place  of  abbots 
could  no  longer  be  found,  the  inmates  of  '  national '  monasteries 
gladly  reverted  to  the  ancient  customs  ;  and  agreed  to  accept  positions 
in  the  cathedrals  and  parish  churches,  which  they  retained  during 
the  next  two  reigns.  Here  again  the  argument  of  this  chapter  is 
justified — for  all  the  monastery  churches  that  now  became  cathedral 
churches  were  of  pre-Norman  origin.  The  history  of  Westminster 
Abbey  has  been  told  in  Vol.  I.  The  early  Saxon  church  at  Bristol 
was  re-constituted  as  an  Augustinian  priory  at  the  Conquest  and  had 
continued  firmly  loyal  to  its  diocesan.  The  growing  importance  of 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY. 


that  city  and  district  was  a  sufficient  reason  for  the  new  creation. 
Oxford  Cathedral  (see  chap.  25)  has  the  same  tale  to  tell.  Its  stones 
speak  to  us  of  the  Norman  builders,  but  its  history  carries  ns  far  back 
into  Saxon  times,  when  S.  Frideswide  founded  her  nunnery  at 
Oseney,  which  was  supplanted  by  an  home  for  Angustinian  canons. 
That  old  priory  of  Oseney  was  first  selected  as  the  '  bishop's  stool,' 
but  it  was  very  soon  removed  to  Christchnrch,  as  a  fitting  completion 
of  the  work  of  Cardinal  Wolsey,  with  whom  the  idea  of  these  new 
cathedrals  originated.  Oxford  "had  earned  a  bishopric  by  the  efforts 
the  University  made  to  clear  the  air  when  men's  minds  were  full  of 
doubt  as  to  the  propriety  of  renouncing  papal  supremacy  ;  and  it 
needed  one  to  give  esprit  de  corps  to  the  numerous  clergy  and  laity 
who  were  teachers  and  students  there ;  but  the  chief  reason  was  to 
relieve  the  diocese  of  Lincoln,  which  then  extended  to  the  Thames. 
Chester  Cathedral  teaches  a  similar  lesson.  A  Saxon  lady  named 
\Verburgh  was  the  foundress,  and  it  belonged  to  the  Benedictine 
Order.  Being  situated  in  a  part  of  the  land  that  once  belonged  to 
the  kingdom  of  Mercia,  it  sometimes  shared  with  Lichfield  and 
Coventry  the  honour  of  being  an  episcopal  seat,  long  before  the 
Tudor  times.  The  need 
for  a  bishopric  for  Ches- 
ter and  district  will  be 
readily  granted,  when  it 
is  remembered  that  the 
three  large  dioceses — 
enormous  in  population 
if  not  in  acreage — of 
Ripon,  Manchester,  and 
Liverpool,  have  since 
been  taken  out  of  it.  We 
may  mention  here  that 
the  Benedictine  abbey  of 
•>r.  Werburgh  at  Chester 
had  encroached  upon  the 
rights  of  the  still  older 
parochial  Church  of  St. 
Oswald,  which  owed  its 
foundation  to  a  king  of 
Northumbria  bearing 
that  name,  who  con- 
quered the  district  of 
which  Chester  was  the 
capital,  long  before  Mer- 
cian  supremacy.  So  too. 
with  Gloucester  Cathedral 
(see  Vol.  I.,  pages  159  and 
237),  which  had  an  unbroken  hi»tory  &»  a  nuoaastery  church  from  the 


CtlKSTER    CATHEDRAL 


5«  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

year  681, when  Osric,&n  under-kingof  Mercia,  made  his  sister Ky.i 
the  first  Abbess.  The  original  fabric  fell  a  victim  to  the  troubles  that 
came  upon  the  land  through  tribal  strifes,  but  it  was  soon  revived 
as  a  '  secular '  college,  and  so  remained  until,  in  the  days  of  Cnut 
the  Great,  Benedictine  monks  supplanted  the  secular  canons. 
The  rebuilding  of  the  church  began  in  the  reign  of  Edward  the 
Confessor,  and  it  was  completed  soon  after  the  Norman  Conquest. 
The  church  has  been  much  altered  since  then  owing  to  the '  pro- 
gressive '  ideas  of  architects,  but  there  still  remains  much  of  the 
early  Norman  church,  under  the  '  perpendicular  '  casing.  When  the 
abbeys  were  suppressed,  and  this  was  raised  to  cathedral  rank,  the 
inmates  of  surrounding  '  national '  monasteries  were  offered  positions 
on  the  cathedral  staff,  and  so  we  find  that  John  Waknman,  the  last 
abbot  of  Tewkesbury,  was  made  the  first  bishop  of  Gloucester. 
Peterborough  Cathedral  (page  28)  is  the  most  notable  instance  of 
the  group,  for  it  was  founded  in  the  seventh  century,  in  memory  of 
Pea  da's  conversion,  and  when  its  rank  was  changed  from  an  abbey 
to  a  cathedral  there  was  no  alteration  whatever  in  the  personnel.  The 
abbot  was  made  the  bishop,  the  prior  became  the  dean,  the  monks 
became  canons  and  choristers  ;  so  that  things  went  on  just  as  before. 
The  services  were  said  from  the  same  service  books  to  the  same 
congregations,  and  therefore  there  was  not  only  no  transfer  from 
one  set  of  persons  to  another  with  different  views,  but  a  continuance 
of  the  same  persons  in  the  same  place  under  reorganised  and  revised 
rules.  This  proves  that  the  great  body  of  English  churchmen — 
clergy,  monks,  and  laity  alike — were  heartily  in  favour  of  the 
changes  that  were  being  made  to  cleanse  and  purify  the  National 
Church  from  worn  out  rules  of  personal  life,  as  well  as  from 
unauthorised  and  uncatholic  dogma.  And  we  cannot  help  perceiving 
that  this  formation  of  new  sees  was  not  an  endowment  de  npvo  out 
of  papal  monasteries,  but  a  tardy  development  of  Saxon  monasteries 
into  the  episcopal  foundations  they  would  have  become  centuries 
before  had  not '  foreign  '  influences  caused  the  normal  growth  of  our 
native  episcopate  to  stop. 

8.  Monastic  Churches  made  "  Collegiate."— Our  cathedral 
chapters  have  been  placed  in  two  classes,  viz.,  those  of  the  '  Old 
Foundation,'  and  those  of  the  '  New  Foundation.'  The  cathedrals 
of  the  Old  foundation  are  those  which,  being  served  by  secvlar 
canons,  were  not  in  the  least  degree  interfered  with  by  the  reforms 
of  Henry's  reign,  viz.,  Llandaff,  Bangor,  St.  David's,  St.  Asaph, 
Lichfield,  York,  London,  Hereford,  Wells,  Exeter,  Salisbury,  Chi- 
chester  and  Lincoln  (all  of  which — except  Hereford — were  illus- 
trated in  our  first  volume).  As  there  has  never  been  any  transference 
or  interruption  in  the  corporate  life  of  those  foundations,  it  cannot 
be  maintained  with  any  show  of  verity  that  the  cathedral  system 
of  the  National  Church  is  modern,  The  cathedrals  of  the  New 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY. 


IT 


foundation  are  those  which  were  originally  served  by  monkt,  and 
th«refore  dissolved  in  theory  at  the  general  suppression  of  r«ligioui 
houses.  They  were  not  dissolved  in  fact,  bat  reconstituted  as 
chapters  of  secular  canons.  They  were  Canterbury,  Rochester, 
Winchester,  Worcester,  Durham,  Norwich,  Ely  and  Carlisle.  Almost 
invariably  the  same  persons  continued  on  as  before,  only  under 
different  titles.  The  bishops  had  all  along  been  abbots  ex  officio, 
and  sat  in  the  abbots'  seats  in  the  chancels,  the  priors  becoming  the 
actual  heads  of  the  monasteries.  By  the  new  constitution  the  priors 
became  deans  as  at  Peterboro1 ;  and  the  other  inmates  canons,  pre- 
centors,  choristers,  &c.  Again  we  see  that  there  was  no  transference 
of  property,  but  the  same  people  continued  to  enjoy  the  ancient 
revenues  belonging  to  their  corporate  body,  and  perform  the  func- 
tions to  which  they  had  been  accustomed,  as  seculars  instead  of 
regulars.  The  five  new  sees  referred  to  in  the  preceding  section 
must  be  added  to  the  cathedrals  of  the  '  New '  foundation.  There 
were  many  other  inmates  of  •  national '  monasteries  subject  to  their 
proper  diocesan,  who  surrendered  their  houses  and  placed  themselves 
at  the  king's  disposal,  who  were  offered  positions  in  the  cathedral 
and  parochial  systems,  and  the  fact  that  very  large  numbers  chose 
to  accept  such  a  change  in  their  rules  of  life,  shows  that  there  was 
much  in  common  between  the  clergy  and  the  Benedictine  monks. 
There  had  never  been  any  difference  between  them  as  to  modes  of 
worship  or  fundamental  doctrines.  They  were,  and  continued 
to  be,  members  of  one  church.  The  most  important  of  the  com- 
munities so  submitting  themselves  to  the  king's  mercy  were  made 
Collegiate  bodies.  Eight  of  them  have  recently  beeu  raised  to 


SOUTHWELL   CATHEDRAL. 


68  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES   ON 

cathedral  rank,  viz  : — Ripon,  Manchester,  St.  Albans,  Truro,  Liver- 
pool, Newcastle,  Southwell  and  Wakefield.  Collegiate  churches  still 
existing  are  to  be  found  at  Windsor,  Heytesbury,  Westminster, 
Middleham,  Wolverhampton  and  elsewhere,  but  most  of  the  colle- 
giate foundations  have  been  suppressed  quite  lately  by  the  powers 
entrusted  to  the  Ecclesiastical  Commissioners.  The  collegiate 
foundations  of  Henry  VIII.  were  intended  to  take  the  place  of  the 
monastic  colleges  that  were  to  be  suppressed.  But  in  all  cases  it 
will  be  found  that  the  collegiate  bodies  were  already  in  existence 
under  another  name,  and  that  they  had  supplanted  the  older  parochia 
clergy  and  used  the  parish  church. 

9.  Monastic  Churches  now  Parochial. — Nothing  can   be 
more  untrue  than  the  statement  that  Henry  VIII.  took  revenues  and 

buildings    from    one    set  of 
clergy    and    gave    them    to 
"    another.      Such  a  fabrication 
-^    altogether    ignores    the    his- 
t%  torical    certainty    that    the 
^  parochial  as  well  as  the  cathe- 
||  dral  clergy,  and  their  repre- 
i|  sentatives     in     Convocation 
gf  were  not  interfered  with  in 
any  way.   We  have  been  con- 
sidering in  this  chapter  the 
j  dissolution  of  monasteries,  but 
not    the    destruction   of   the 
English  Church;  for  although 
monasteries    had  been   from 

BEVERLEY    MINSTER.  ^  earliegt  timeg  &  part  Q£  the 

Church's  system,  it  was  not  a  vital  part.  But  the  diocesan  and  paro- 
chial systems  were  her  very  life-blood,  her  arterial  and  nervous 
organization  ;  and  as  these  were  never  intended  to  be  interfered 
with,  the  old  cathedrals  and  parish  churches  remained  untouched 
in  the  days  to  which  we  have  been  referring.  And  wherever 
a  minster  church  (as  at  Beverley  or  Malvern  or  Sher borne) 
remains  in  our  possession,  enquiry  will  show  that  it  was  originally 
founded  long  before  or  soon  after  the  Norman  Conquest,  when 
as  yet  the  bishops  of  Eome  had  not  been  suffered  to  have  any 
jurisdiction  in  England.  It  is  true  that  Henry  VIII.  made 
"  grants  "  of  some  of  these  buildings,  after  he  had  first  stolen  them 
away,  but  it  may  be  fairly  maintained  that  he  had  no  right  to  steal 
them.  Moreover  they  were  surrendered  on  the  understanding  that 
they  should  be  restored — in  order  that  they  might  continue  to  be 
used  as  the  parish  church.  Although  it  is  clear  that  valuable  con- 
siderations were  often  given  by  parishioners  to  the  king's  agents  for 
v-heir  interest  in  the  preservation  of  the  old  Church,  there  is  nothing 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY. 


69 


whatever  to  show  that  any  free  gifts  of  monty,  lands,  or  tithes  were 
granted  to  any  parish  out  of  the  exchequer.  All  that  can  be  said 
with  certainty  is  that  parishioners  were  allowed  to  keep  their  oion. 
Most  of  the  Benedictine  and  Augustinian  monasteries  had  grown  up 
round  or  oat  of  the  ancient  parish  churches,  which  the  brethren 
us^d  for  their  devotions  ;  or,  to  speak  mora  correctly,  built  a  suitable 
addition  to  eastward — the  transepts,  for  example,  and  the  chancel — the 
parisl7;;vncrs  worshinp-'n^o'ily  in  the  nave.  So  we  find  many  instances 
throughout  the  comury  where,  while  the  monastic  portions  of  the 
churches  were  destroyed  and  remain  in  ruins, 
the  naves  are  still  us.d.  as  they  had  been 
from  the  beginning,  as  the  parish  church. 
So  it  would  have  been  at  Tewkesbury, 
had  not  the  parishioners  bought  the  monastic 
portion  of  the  church  for  £4,000  ;  at  which 
the  commissioners  estimated  the  value  of 
the  "superfluous  buildings  "  on  the  estate. 
Many  friends  of  the 
Church  denied  them- 
selves of  necessaries 
at  that  time  to  pre- 
serve the  sacred  fanes 
of  ancient  '  national ' 
monasteries  from  total 
destruction.  St.  Alban's 
Abbey  is  another  illus- 
tration in  point.  From 
the  first  existence  of  a 
church  there  the  inhabi- 
tants had  used  the  nave 
as  their  parish  church  ; 
and  they  were  allowed 
to  retain  it  when  the 
dissolution  came,  even 
as  the  present  parish- 
ioners do,  now  that  it 
has  been  raised  to  the 
dignity  of  a  cathedral 

Church.  TEWKEaBCET   ABBEY. 

10.  Educational  and  Charitable  Foundations.— The  tithes 
of  ancient  parochial  churches  did  not  all  go  to  "laymen.  The  king 
was  obliged  to  keep  up  an  appearance  of  sincerity  by  doing  something 
of  a  charitable  nature  with  the  plunder  of  great  monasteries,  and  so 
a  few  grammar  schools  were  founded  to  continue  educational  work 
in  places  wnere  the  monks  had  been  doing  really  useful  work  ; 
and  Trinity  College  was  founded  for  Cambridge  University 


tfO  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES   ON 

as  Christchurch  had  been  for  Oxford.  The  monks  and  friars  had 
supported  many  colleges  for  training  youths  and  novices  in  their 
systems,  but  these  were  all  suppressed  by  virtue  of  the  statute 
(37  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  4)  which  gave  all  collegiate  and  chantry  endow- 
ments to  the  king.  The  Oxford  and  Cambridge  colleges  which 
survived  were  all  founded  to  exclude  monks  and  friars.  An  example 
of  the  permanent  alienation  of  parochial  tithes  and  the  injury  done 
thereby  to  parishes  may  be  found  useful.  The  ancient  Benedictine 
abbey  of  St.  Mary  at  York  had  appropriated  a  vast  amount  of  tithes 
belonging  to  numerous  parishes  in  the  Northern  counties.  At  the 
death  of  Henry  VIII.  the  estates  of  that  abbey  were  possessed  by 
the  Crown,  but  Queen  Mary  fulfilled  her  father's  declared  intention 
by  giving  them  to  the  master  and  fellows  of  Trinity  College,  Cam- 
bridge, with  whom  they  still  remain.  St.  Mary's  abbey  was  obliged  to 
provide  for  church  services  in  the  appropriated  parishes,  and  they 
did  so  by  appointing  deputies  (Vicars)  whom  they  remunerated  with 
the  lesser  tithes.1  Whatever  obligations  were  attached  to  the 
ownership  of  tithes  by  the  abbey,  together  with  its  ecclesiastical 
patronage,  continued  to  attach  to  it  when  transferred,  first  to  the 
Crown  and  then  to  Trinity  College.  Kirkby  Lonsdale  e.g.  was  a 
parish  so  appropriated,  and  the  gross  tithes  of  it  are  now  worth 
£1,300  year.  It  had  been  supported  under  the  abbey  by  the  small 
tithes  which  it  bas  retained  through  all  changes.  These  are  worth 
about  £300  a  year.  So  that  Trinity  College  receives  about  £1,000 
annually  from  the  tithes  of  Kirkby  Lonsdale  which  is  but  one  of  very 
many  parishes  in  its  patronage.  The  same  reasoning  holds  good  of 
all  other  rectorial  tithes  now  in  the  hands  of  lay  corporations.  The 
parishes  are  deprived  of  the  difference  between  them  and  the 
vicarial  tithes,  which  is  often  very  considerable.  Some  of  the 
monasteries  had  been  of  incalculable  benefit  to  England  in 
the  shape  of  '  Hospitals.'  In  the  present  day  they  would  be  more 
appropriately  called '  hotels '  than  homes  for  the  relief  of  sickness. 
Doubtless  some  were  exclusively  for  the  benefit  of  sick  folk,  and 
two  of  the  best — viz.,  St.  Bartholomew's  and  St.  Thomas's  Hospitals 
in  London — were  allowed  to  survive  the  general  wreck,  and  con- 
tinue their  work  of  mercy,  though  not  as  religious  houses.  They 
have  since  been  greatly  increased  in  importance  and  usefulness  by 
private  voluntary  benevolence.  In  all  cases  where  a  secular  founda- 
tion is  said  to  have  been  founded  out  of  the  monasteries  suppressed 
by  the  king  it  can  easily  be  shown  to  be,  not  a  new  foundation  out 
of  the  general  fund,  but  an  old  foundation  allowed  to  continue 
because  it  was  loyal  and  obedient  to  the  law.  This  does  not  apply 
to  private  charitable  foundations  like  the  Charterhouse  School,  with 

1  Tithei  are  of  two  classes  -.—Great  and  lesser.  The  great  or  Rectorial  were 
tithes  of  produce,  from  such  things  as  grow  out  of  the  earth— such  as  corn  ;  and  the 
small  or  Vicarial  were  tithes  of  produce  from  such  things  as  vc?  nourished  on 
the  earth— *.«.,  sheep,  pigs,  eggs,  fruit,  eta. 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY.  61 

which  the  government  had  nothing  whatever  to  do.  The  monastery 
in  Goswell  Street  from  which  it  takes  its  name  belonged  to  the  Car- 
thusian Order.  It  was  founded  by  virtue  of  a  '  Bull '  of  Pope  Urban 
VI.,  in  the  year  13CO.  It  ceased  to  exist  as  a  monastery  in  1535, 
and  the  prior  was  executed  for  resisting  th«  king's  commissioners. 
The  estates  belonging  to  it  were  given  by  the  king  to  the  groom  of 
his  '  hales  (nets)  and  tents.'  The  property  was  afterwards  bought 
and  sold,  as  any  other  land  might  be,  confiscated  by  the  Crown 
again  because  of  the  treason  of  its  subsequent  holders,  again  granted 
by  the  Crown  to  a  nobleman,  who  sold  it  in  the  year  1600,  for 
£13.000.  to  a  London  merchant,  Sir  Thomas  Sutton,  who  founded  a 
charity  school  for  forty  poor  boys,  and  an  almshouse  for  eighty  old 
men.  That  intention  '  developed '  (as  many  old  charities  have 
done)  into  the  great  public  school  which  has  been  removed  to 
Godalming,  where  rich  men's  sons  are  educated.  There  is  more  than 
sufficient  evidence  in  this  chapter  to  prove  that  Henry  VIII.  did 
not  take  away  the  property  of  Romanists  and  bestow  it  upon  '  Pro- 
testant '  clergy.  The  estates  possessed  by  upholders  of  papal  supre- 
macy were  not  transferred  to  the  National  Church  at  all.  It  was 
merely  allowed  to  keep  a  portion  of  its  own  rightful  property. 


CHAPTER  XIX.  (A.D.  1547-1558). 
THE  RKIGNS  OF  EDWARD  VI.  AND  MARY. 

"  Anathemas  are  hurled 

From  both  sides ;  veteran  thunders  (the  brute  test 
Of  truth)  are  met  by  fulminations  new — 


S«e  Latimer  and  Ridley,  in  the  might 

Of  Faith,  stand  coupled  for  a  common  flight  I    ... 

Earth  never  witnessed  object  more  sublime 

In  constancy,  in  fellowship  more  fair." — Wordtvurih. 

1.  The  Council  of  Regency.— It  would  be  better  for  the  cause 
of  Christian  charity  if  we  could  draw  a  veil  over  many  events  with 
which  this  chapter  has  to  deal  ;  for  the  reigns  of  Edward  and  Mary 
form  a  decade  of  mutual  intolerance  which  every  one  would  be  glad, 
if  possible,  to  forget.  Both  were  tools  in  the  hands  of  their  advisers. 
Mary  studied  to  please  her  husband,  and  the  boy  king  was  quite  at 
the  mercy  of  the  Council  of  Regency.  Edward  acceded  to  the 
throne  January  28,  1547,  at  the  age  of  10,  his  uncle,  the  Duke  of 
Somertet,  being  made  Lord  Protector.  Somerset  was  the  leader  of 
the  reforming  section  of  the  council,  and  was  strongly  supported 


62 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES 


- 

in  t^coTncTla  of  the  late  king  gave  them  reasonable i  expectation to 
a  share  in    the  regency,  found  themselves  altogether  nnno 
and  they   with  the  excluded  members  of  the  council,  formed  an 
opposiS  party,  which  seems  to  have  advised  the  Princess  Mary 
statements  and  her  expressed  determination  on  religious 
'  no  <"t»t4 


questions  were  in  accord.     They  desired 

should   be  made  until  the  young  king  came  of  age. 


KING  EEY.-AED   VI.  IN  COUNCIL. 

cabinet  also  there  was  much  strife  and  envying,  and  difference  of 
o^on.   Somerset  did  not  seem  to  care  much  £"^teES*££ 
might  enrich  himself  at  its  expense  ;  Lord  Dudley,  afterwar 
Sf  Northumberland,  was  an  ardent  believer  in  the  reforming  opinions 
JhaVwere  making  great  headway  abroad;   and  both  were  ready  to 
sacrifice  Church  and  Realm  to  their  own  advantage, 
ofthe  council  were  in  favour  of  increasing  the  {£»•£'£«£ 
Sves  of  the  Crown,  that  their  own  delegated  authority  might  be  t. 
greater      The  first  act  of  the  council  was  to  call  upon  all  officia 
fersons    in    the    realm    to    renew    their    commissions    and    swear 
aSnce    the  members  of  it  setting  the  example.    Among  them 
cam?  the'bsho^who  again  agreed  "to  hold  their  sees  dunng  the 


EXGLISX    CHURCH   HISTORY.  6S 

king's  pleasure  and  perform  jurisdiction  in  his  came.  Daring 
Henry's  reign,  and  owing  to  the  statute  of  the  "  Six  Articles,"  the 
doctrines  of  the  Church  were  hardly  altered  ;  but  there  were  many 
persons  whom  it  had  kept  in  check  that  were  prepared  for  the  most 
violent  extremes.  Craamer's  chaplain,  Dr.  Ridley,  indiscreetly 
suggested  in  a  sermon  that  all  images  should  be  destroyed  ;  and 
some  zealots,  estimating  his  words  as  an  indication  of  the  way  the 
Government  was  tending,  at  once  proceeded  to  demolish  the  statuary 
and  stained  glass  that  adorned  the  churches.  Bishop  Gardiner 
protested  to  the  Protector  Somerset  against  such  outrage,  and  a 
proclamation  was  issued  to  maintain  peace  and  protect  the  churches. 
It  was  soon  evident  that  the  council  intended,  if  possible,  to  dictate 
on  Church  matters  without  reference  to  Convocation  ;  but  the  latter 
upheld  its  dignity  (November,  1517)  by  claiming  its  proper  legislative 
functions.  And  none  too  soon  :  for  in  August,  before  Parliament 
and  Convocation  could  meet,  the  council  had  instituted  a  general 
visitation  of  England  in  the  king's  name,  providing  the  Commis- 
sioners with  numerous  Injunction*  by  which  they  were  instructed  to 
enquire  into  the  religious  provisions  of  every  parish,  remove  any 
images  which  had  been  superstitionsly  adored,  and  to  see  that  Bibles 
of  the  largest  volume,  together  with  the  paraphrases  of  Erasmus  on 
the  Gospels,  were  provided  in  each  church.  The  visitors  were  also  to 
make  provision  for  periodical  sermons  against  the  bishop  of  Rome 
and  in  favour  of  the  king's  supremacy  ;  and  other  sermons  once  a 
quarter  "  purely  and  sincerely  declaring  the  Word  of  God."  All 
unlicensed  preaching  was  forbidden;  and  a  Book  of  Homiliet,  said  to 
have  been  composed  by  Cranmer,  Latimer  and  Ridley,  was  ordered 
to  be  read  instead.  Bishops  Gardiner  and  Bonner  made  energetic 
protests  against  the  visitation,  and  were  sent  to  prison  by  the 
council.  Bonner  withdrew  his  protest  and  was  released  ;  but 
Gardiner  remained  firm  and  was  kept  confined,  until  Parliament 
met  in  November  and  passed  the  act  of  general  pardon  in  com- 
memoration of  the  new  king's  accession. 

2.  Suppression  of  the  Chantries.— Reference  has  been  made 
(page  14,)  to  the  chantry  chapels,  which  were  built  for  the  purpose 
of  propitiatory  services  for  the  departed  ;  and  also  (page  60)  to  the 
statute  which  empowered  the  late  king  to  suppress  them,  together 
with  other  charitable  foundations.  Very  few  were  suppressed  before 
the  death  of  Henry ;  but  the  Protector  Somerset  and  his  co-executors 
soon  made  up  their  minds  to  enrich  themselves,  and  discharge  their 
liabilities  to  the  late  king's  creditors,  by  rigorously  carrying  out  the 
provisions  of  that  statute  on  the  plea  of  reclaiming  the  funds  so  appro- 
priated from  superstitious  uses.  Soon  after  their  first  Parliament  was 
called  together  they  succeeded  in  passing  a  statute  (1  Ed.  vi.,  c.  14) 
which  granted  to  the  Crown  the  revenues  of  all  '  chantries,  frater- 
nities, hospitals,  and  colleges'  still  remaining;  with  the  exception 


<4  ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 

of  the  colleges  at  Oxford,  Cambridge,  Eton,  and  Winchester.  The 
chief  reason  for  the  suppression  of  colleges,  etc.,  was  to  do  away 
with  such  as  had  been  founded  by  the  religious  orders  as  nurseries  and 
auxiliaries  for  their  houses.  As  previously  stated,  all  colleges  which 
survived  had  been  founded  with  the  express  purpose  of  excluding 
monks  and  friars  from  their  benefits  ;  but  as  many  collegiate  institu- 
tions belonging  to  the  Seculars  were  also  suppressed,  that  could  not 
have  been  the  only  reason.  With  them  as  with  the  monasteries  it 
will  be  found  on  examination  that  those  which  survived  assented  to  the 
royal  supremacy  and  the  divorce  of  Queen  Catharine,  and  in  other  ways 
endeavoured  to  advance  the  cause  of  Church  Reform.1  With  reference 
to  the  statement  often  made  that  the  revenues  of  chantries  (having 
been  bequeathed  for  purposes  which  the  Church  of  England  then 
and  now  declares  blasphemous  and  deceitful)  ought  not  to  be  held 
by  the  Church  as  part  of  her  endowments ;  it  is  sufficient  to  say 
that  no  part  of  the  chantry  revenues  came  into  the  possession  of 
the  parochial  clergy  at  all.  It  was  not  the  practice  of  the  time  to 
give  the  Church  anything,  but  rather  to  filch  from  it  its  privileges 
and  possessions.  Cranmer  tried  to  prevent  the  complete  alienation 
of  the  revenues,  but  failed.  The  chantry  revenues  were  kept  distinct 
from  the  parochial  endowments,  as  the  various  charities  in  many 

Earishes  still  are,  so  that  it  was  an  easy  matter  to  seize  upon  them, 
everal  thousand  benefactions  were  confiscated.  The  Act  provided 
that  the  proceeds  should  be  used  for  endowing  grammar  schools,  and 
increasing  the  incomes  of  vicarages  which  the  suppression  of  monas- 
teries had  impoverished,  but  the  money  was  applied  by  the  council 
to  liquidate  King  Henry's  debts  and  satisfy  their  own  cupidity. 
And  this  is  not  the  worst.  Somerset  caused  to  be  granted  to  himself 
and  his  immediate  friends  the  revenues  of  many  cathedral  dignities 
also ;  and  pulled  down  City  churches,  and  a  cloister  of  St.  Paul's 
Cathedral,  to  obtain  stone  for  his  palace  of  Somerset  House,  in  the 
Strand  ;  and  was  only  prevented  from  doing  the  like  to  Westminster 
Abbey  by  the  Dean's  sacrifice  of  half  its  revenues.1  All  these  things 
were  done  by  the  avaricious  councillors  in  the  name  of  the  royal 
supremacy,  without  any  apparent  apprehension  of  the  difference 
between  things  sacred  and  profane.  The  principle  that  guided  them 
is  called  Erastiani*m  ;  after  a  Swiss  physician  named  Erastus,  who 
a  little  later  on  boldly  denied  the  Divine  organisation  of  Christ's 
Church,  and  held  it  to  be  a  mere  creature  of  the  state  ;  dependent 
thereon  for  its  existence  and  authority.  While  the  highest  officers 
in  the  realm  were  wantonly  destroying  and  appropriating  holy 
things,  we  cannot  wonder  at  the  sacrilegious  acts  recorded  of  the 
people.  The  marble  coffins  in  which  people  had  been  buried  were 
made  into  troughs  for  horses  to  drink  from,  altar  cloths  and  vest- 

1  See,  e.g..  Professor  Burrows'  Worthies  of  All  Souli'  College,  Oxjord.  Macmillan. 
8  Somerset  House  was  rebuilt  in  177*. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY. 


65 


menta  were  adapted  to  domestic  purpose?;  and  the  euobaristic  vessplg 
used  for  ordinary  eating  and  drinking.  It  was  a  harvest  time  for 
thieves  and  a  high  holiday  for  the  profane.  Later  in  the  reign  things 
went  from  bad  to  worse.  The  episcopal  manors  were  seized  upon  by 
a  svbtem  of  forced  exchanges,  to  the  great  imp<'verisnment  of  the 
sees  ;  patrons  of  benefices,  and  impropriators  of  tithes,  witheld  the 
incomes  of  vicars ;  and  on  a  weak  pretence  the  Protector  Northumber- 
land appropriated  the  whole  revenues  of  the  bishopric  of  Durham. 
Ultimately  a  regular  plan  was  formulated  for  defrauding  the 
episcopate  ;  but  the  young  king  had  by  that  time  begun  to  take  a 
more  responsible  part  in  the  conduct  of  affairs  and  it  was  vetoed 


GBEAT    HALL    OF    CHRIST'S    HOSPITAL. 

He  said  :  "  You  have  had  among  you  the  abbeys,  which  you  have 
consumed  in  superfluous  apparel  and  dice  and  cards,  and  now  you 
wouid  have  the  bishops'  lands  and  revenues  to  abuse  likewise  !  Set 
your  heart*  at  rest :  there  shall  no  such  alteration  take  place  while  I 
live."  In  consequence  of  a  sermon  by  Bishop  Ridley.  Edward  was 
led  before  his  death  to  do  something  for  the  London  poor.  In  con- 
junction with  the  Lord  Mayor  a  comprehensive  scheme  was  drawn 
up  to  relieve  some  of  their  wants.  The  Grey  Friars  monastery  in 
what  is  now  Newgate  Street  was  converted  into  the  school  called 
I'^rht'i  Hotpifal  for  the  children  of  the  poor,  St.  Bartholomew's 


66  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

and  St.  Thomas's  Hospitals  were  reconstituted  with  augmented 
endowments  to  relieve  the  sick  poor,  and  the  royal  palace  of  Bride- 
well  was  turned  into  a  house  of  correction  for  the  vagabond  poor. 
Edward  VI.  also  established  twenty-two  grammar  schools  in  various 
parts  of  the  country,  now  known  as  the  "  King's "  schools,  or 
King  Edward  VI.'s  schools — as  at  Birmingham.  Schools  were  natur- 
ally suggested  as  an  appropriate  way  of  spending  some  of  the  money 
that  came  into  his  hands  from  suppressed  colleges  and  chantries,  for 
the  chantry  priests  were  often  engaged  in  tuition  of  the  village 
children  to  fill  up  their  time  and  increase  their  income. 

3.  The  Liturgy.1 — Amid  the  prevalent  cupidity  and  irreverent 
sacrilege  it  is  cheering  to  find  that  solid  and  lasting  work  was  done 
by  the  committee  appointed  by  Convocation,  in  1542,  to  revise  and 
translate  the  ancient  service  books.  The  first  Convocations  of 
Edward's  reign  met  in  1547,  and  at  once  proceeded  to  the  Eucharist 
controversy  by  condemning  the  practice  of  withholding  the  chalice 
from  the  laity,  and  advising  Parliament  to  pass  a  statute  (1  Ed.  VI., 
c.  1)  to  enforce  Communion  in  both  kinds.  The  resolution  passed 
Convocation  November  30,  and  the  bill  received  royal  assent  Decem- 
ber 10.  A  committee  of  Convocation  under  Archbishop  Cranmer  had 
been  engaged  since  1546  in  a  revision  of  the  Latin  Missal,  and  a  form 
for  the  Communion  service  was  issued  in  March  1548.  It  left  the 
old  Latin  service  intact  up  to  the  reception  of  the  elements  by  the 
celebrant,  but  added  an  English  form  for  the  communion  of  the 
people  in  both  kinds.  Its  use  dated  from  Easter  1.548.  This  was 
only  a  tentative  arrangement,  for  later  in  the  year  the  committee 
which  had  been  working  since  1542  submitted  the  result  of  their 
labours  to  Convocation  in  the  form  of  the  First  English  Prayer 
Bcok?  This  was  quickly  approved,  and  an  Act  of  Uniformity 
applied  for  from  Parliament  to  enforce  its  use  in  all  churches  on  and 
after  the  following  Whit  Sunday.  It  passed  the  Houses  by  January 
21,  and  received  the  royal  assent  just  before  Ed  want  had  completed 
the  second  year  of  his  reign  (2&  3  Ed.  VI.,  c.l).  Archbishop  Cranmer 
was  the  chief  of  the  revising  committee,  and  spared  no  pains  to 
obtain  the  opinions  of  all  sections  of  reforming  divines  at  home  and 
abroad  as  aids  to  its  discussions.  "  The  principles  which  guided  the 
Prayer-book  revisers  were  very  simple.  In  doctrinal  matters  they 
took  for  their  standard  of  orthodoxy  the  Bible,  and  the  belief  of  the 
Church  for  the  first  five  centuries  ;  in  framing  formularies  for  the 

1  The  word  Liturgy  is  here  used  loose!}-  for  the  Prayer-book  in  general, although 
it  strictly  belongs  to  the  Communion  Office.     For  further  stu-iy  of  the  Liturgy 
see  Canon   Daniel's   History  of  the  Prayer-book.— Wells  Gardner— Price  6*.;  and 
the  Prayer-book  Commentary,  S.P.C.K.,  U 

2  Reprints  havo  been  published  of  both  the  Edwardian  English  Prayer-books, 
by  Pirk<"-  vi  >  (Vi.   atvl  0-rifflth  an  1  !'arr>n,  at  1*.  each 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY.  67 

tw:duct  of  pnhlic  worship,  they  retained  whatsoever  they  could  of 
the  old  service-books  ;  in  ritual  matters  they  continued  to  follow  the 
traditions  of  their  own  Church,  deviating  from  them  only  where 
spiritual  edification  rendered  such  deviation  necessary.  Their  object 
was  not  to-revolutionise,  but  to  reform  ;  not  to  get  as  far  away  as 
possible  from  the  Church  of  Rome,  or  from  any  other  Church,  but  by 
retracing  the  steps  whereby  the  primitive  Church  of  England  had 
'fallen  from  herself,'  to  return  to  Catholic  faith  and  practice." 
(E.  Daniel).  A  complete  contemporary  statement  of  the  revisers' 
motives  may  be  found  in  the  chapter  entitled  "  Concerning  the  Service 
of  the  Church  "  at  the  beginning  of  our  present  Prayer-book,  which 
was  the  preface  to  the  first  English  book  ;  and  in  the  following 
chapter 'Of  Ceremonies,'  then  printed  at  the  end  of  the  book.  The  new 
Prayer-book  was  not  acceptable  to  many  parish  priests ; — least  of  all 
to  those  who  had  sometime  been  inmates  of  religious  houses,  some  of 
whom  were  quite  untrained  for  pastoral  work,  and  therefore  not 
properly  qualified  for  the  position — and  those  who  disapproved  of 
any  alteration  in  the  conventional  way  of  conducting  public  worship 
stirred  up  ill  feeling  against  the  book  "by  an  irreverent  and  ludicrous 
sing-song  rendering  of  it. so  that  people  thought  it  was  'like a  Christ- 
mas game.'  It  wanted  very  little  tlien  to  make  the  working  classes 
express  discontent.  The  large  demand  for  wool  had  turned  the 
greater  part  of  England  into  sheep  farms,  thus  reducing  the  amount 
of  field  labour;  and  wages  were  paid  in  the  debased  coin  of  Henry's 
reign,  wliich  advanced  the  price  of  vital  necessaries.  We  read  there- 
fore of  rebellions  in  the  eastern  counties  and  the  west  of  England,  in 
which  social  and  relig'ous  grievances  were  curiously  mixed  up.  The 
Devonshire  rebels  petitioned  for  the  suppression  of  the  Bible,  and 
the  continuance  of  the  old  Latin  services  ;  until  Cranmcr  explained 
that  the  new  book  was  oniy  the  ancient  services  in  an  English  dress. 
The  East  Anglian  rising  was  quelled  by  Lord  Dudley,  and  the 
Western  rebellion  by  Lord  Russell ;  but  not  without  much  difficulty 
and  bloodshed,  and  the  hanging  of  the  ringleaders;  with  which 
however  the  Church  had  nothing  to  d<\  Protector  Somerset  was 
then  impeached  for  encouraging  the  rebels,  and  mal-administration 
generally;  and  was  succeeded  by  the  Duke  of  Northumberland.  The 
great  body  of  clergy  and  people  had  welcomed  the  appeamnce 
of  the  first  English  Prayer-book  ;  but  in  order  to  give  effect  to  the 
Act  of  Uniformity  a  second  visitation  was  ordered  by  the  council 
in  the  Autumn  of  1549.  The  instructions  to  the  commissioners 
plainly  shewed  that  the  leanings  of  the  new  protector  were 
in  favour  of  a  still  more  rapid  and  vigorous  reform,  in  the  direction 
of  the  most  Calvinistic  ideas,  and  when  bishops  and  clergy  of  the 
"  old  learning  "  declined  to  conform  to  the  new  demands,  on  the 
ground  that  the  council  had  no  right  to  exercise  the  royal  supremacy 
during  the  king's  minority,  they  were  deprived  aud  imprisoned.  The 
jurisdiction  of  bishops  was  suspended  during  both  these  visitations. 


68 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


4.  The  Edwardian  Bishops.— The  second  Act  of  Parliament 
passed  in  Edward's  reign  (1  Ed.  VI.,  c.  2)  had  interfered  with  the 
customary  method  of  appointing 
bishops,  by  abolishing  the  conge 
d'eiire  hitherto  granted  to 
cathedral  chapters,  and  enacting 
that  all  bishops  should  be  con- 
secrated on  receipt  of  "  royal 
letters  patent "  solely.  The  Act 
also  provided  that  all  episcopal 
acts  pertaining  to  jurisdiction 
should  be  dune  in  the  king's 
name  ;  and  declared  the  episco- 
pal office  to  be  tenable  during 
the  king's  pleasure  only,  or 
during  good  behaviour,  instead 
of  during  life  as  formerly. 
Under  these  new  powers  the 
council  was  able  to  deprive  all 
bishops  who  were  not  willing 
to  sanction  its  policy  or  pro- 
ceedings. The  first  Prayer-book 
contained  no  services  for  ordi- 
nation, but  the  old  Pontificals  ARCHBISHOP  CBAXMER. 
(page  39)  were  revised  and  translated  by  a  committee  of  twelve, 
six  being  bishops,  and  their  work  was  completed  by  February, 
1550.  In  most  things  that  are  done  by  committees  a  minority  decline 
to  give  unqualified  assent  to  all  details  of  the  work  ;  and  when  the 
new  Ordinal  was  laid  before  the  council,  Nicholas  Heath,  bishop  of 
Worcester,  expressed  his  disagreement  with  some  things  his  colleagues 
had  inserted  or  omitted  ;  though  he  promised  to  obey  its  provisions. 
In  modern  times  his  objection  would  hardly  have  been  noticed,  but 
then  the  council  pat  him  in  prison  ;  another  bishop,  Grorge  Day  of 
Chichester,  being  sent  to  keep  him  company  for  objecting  to  use 
either  the  Ordinal  or  the  Prayer-book.  Both  these  bishops  were 
deprived  under  the  above  statute  by  a  joint  commission  of  clergy  and 
laity;  Day's  place  being  taken  by  John  Scory  (1552),  and  the  see  of 
Worcester  given  to  John  Hooper,  to  hold  in  commendam  with  that 
of  Gloucester.  Several  other  bishops  were  deprived  for  resisting  tne 
council,  viz  : — Edmund  Banner,  bibhop  of  London  (1550),  whose 
place  was  filled  by  Nicholas  Ridley,  translated  from  Rochester  ; 
Stephen  Gardiner,  bishop  of  Winchester  (1551),  who  was  succeeded 
by  John  Poynet,  also  translated  from  Rochester  ;  Cvfhbrrt  Totmtall, 
bishop  of  Durham,  whose  place  was  not  filled  up  because  the  revenues 
of  the  see  had  been  confiscated  by  the  Protector;  and  John  Voyxry, 
bishop  of  Exeter,  who  resigned  his  see  to  his  suffragan  Milea 
Coverdale  in  1551,  and  was  imprisoned  for  alleged  complicity  in  the 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  6? 

Devonshire  rebellion.  Gardiner  and  Tonstall  were  sent  to  the  Tower, 
Bonner  to  the  Marshalsea  prison.  Heath  and  Day  to  the  Fleet.  Other 
bishops  appointed  through  ordinary  vacancies  in  Edward's  reign  were 
Robert  Ferrar  to  St.  David's,  1548,  and  John  Taylor  to  Lincoln, 
1552 ;  the  other  translations  being  William  Barlow  from  St.  Asaph 
to  Bath  and  Wells,  1543,  Thomas  Thirlby  from  Westminster  to 
Norwich,  1550,  and  Henry  Holbeach  from  Rochester  to  Lincoln  in 
1547.  Much  trouble  was  caused  when  Hooper  was  appointed  by  the 
council  to  the  see  of  Gloucester  in  1550.  He  had  been  a  Cistercian 
monk,  but  accepted  reformation  principles  at  the  dissolution.  During 
the  reaction  at  the  close  of  Henry's  reign  he  took  refuge  with  Calvin 
at  Geneva,  and  imbibed  the  revolutionary  ideas  of  the  latter.  On 
his  return  he  became  noted  for  extreme  opinions,  and  it  was  much 
against  Cranmer's  wish  that  he  was  nominated  to  the  bishopric. 
When  the  time  csme  for  consecration  Hooper  declined  to  be  robed  as 
the  Ordinal  directed,  on  the  ground  that  all  vestments  were  super- 
stitious, and  "  relics  of  Judaism."  The  council  wanted  Cranmer  to 
consecrate  without  them,  but  the  primate  declined.  Every  effort  was 
made  to  change  the  mind  of  the  obstinate  nominee,  but  in  vain.  He 
was  therefore  ordered  to  keep  his  house,  and  abstain  from  preaching 
or  publishing  anything.  He  treated  the  order  with  contempt,  and 
suffered  for  his  folly  by  being  committed  to  the  Fleet  prison.  Two 
months'  confinement  was  more  efficacious  than  all  the  arguments,  and 
he  was  consecrated  in  full  canonicals  March,  1551.  The  Six  Articles 
Statute  of  Henry's  reign  had  withdrawn  the  permission  for  Clergy  to 
marry  :  but  it  Was  repealed,  with  other  repressive  measures,  by  1  Ed, 
VI.,  c.  12.  Convocation  obtained  a  new  act  (2  Ed.  VI.,  c.  21),  per- 
mitting but  discouraging  clerical  matrimony,  which  was  rendered  less 
objectionable  by  a  farther  act  later  on  (5* and  6  Ed.  VI..  c.  12).  A 
large  number  of  clergy  and  most  bishops  availed  themselves  of  the 
privilege,  but  their  wives  were  very  lightly  esteemed  by  the  public. 

5.  Foreign  Religious  Reformers. — England  soon  became  a 
home  of  refuge  for  foreign  '  Protestants.'  The  church  of  the  Austin 
Friars,  in  the  city  of  London,  exempted  from  the  general  destruction 
of  foreign  monasteries,  was  given  to  exiled  Dutch  Reformers,  who 
were  presided  over  by  John  A'  Lasco ;  the  Crypt  of  Canterbury 
Cathedral  was  appropriated  to  refugees  from  France  under  the  same 
presidency  ;  and  part  of  Glast/rabury  Abbey  was  appropriated  to 
some  Gerjian  exiles,  under  P>77anu*  of  Strasburg.  Besides  these 
protected  cr.n?regat  ons  there  were  many  objectionable  theorists,  like 
the  Anabaptists  who  had  wrought  much  mischief  at  Miinster.  who 
were  regarded  a?  dansrerous  Anabaptists  denied  the  Godhead  of 
pur  Lord,  and  refused  baptism  to  infants.  They  were  not  much 
interfered  with  until  it  was  found  that  their  lawless  «ocia!  teneta 
brought  scandal  on  religion.  Th^n  several  were  arrested  and 
arraigned,  notably  Joan  £i>v.rcf>ier,  who  w»a  brought  before 


TO  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    ON 

the  Council  and  condemned  for  denying  the  Saviour's  Incarnation. 
As  she  obstinately  refused  to  recant  the  young  king  was  prevailed 
upon  to  sign  a  warrant  for  her  to  be  burnt.  A  special  warrant  was 
needed  for  this,  because  the  statutes  relating  to  the  punishment  of 
heresy  had  been  repealed  at  the  beginning  of  the  reign.  Although 
burning  was  the  common  punishment  for  heresy  in  all  European 
countries  at  that  time,  this  recurrence  to  it  under  Cranrrer's  primacy 
is  much  to  be  deplored.  Not  long  after,  another  Anabaptist,  tim>rge 
Van  Par  re,  suffered  a  similar  fate.  Cranmcr  persuaded  the  king  to 
sign  the  warrants  for  their  execution  by  pointing  out  that  their  opinions 
were  blasphemy  against  God,  and  direct  denials  of  the  Apostles'  Creed. 
Besides  the  refugees  there  were  many  learned  reformers,  specially 
invited  to  this  country  by  Cranmer,  on  account  of  their  eminence  in 
iealing  with  the  controversies  of  the  time.  In  a  letter  to  one  of 
them  Cranmer  states  his  motives  thus  : — 

"I  considered  it  better,  forasmuch  as  our  adversaries  arc  now  holding 
their  councils  at  Trent  to  confirm  their  errors,  to  recommend  his  majesty  to  grant 
bis  assistance,  that  iu  England,  or  elsewhere,  there  might  be  convoked  a  synod  o' 
Mie  most  learned  and  excellent  persons  ;  in  which  provUion  might  be  made  for  tLe 
purity  of  ecclesiastical  doctrine,  and  especially  for  an  agreement  upon  the 
3acramentarian  controversy." 

The  synod  was  never  held,  but  there  were  several  public  disputa- 
tions at  Oxford  and  Cambridge  respecting  the  nature  of  the  presenw 
af  Christ  in  the  elements  of  the  Eucharist.  Three  of  the  foreigner 
whom  Cranmer  invited  are  specially  noteworthy.  One  of  them  was 
an  Italian  named  Peter  Martyr.  He  had  been  an  Augustinian  friar, 
and  had  married  an  escaped  nun.  The  regency  made1  him  Regius 
professor  of  divinity  at  Oxford  in  1547.  The  second  was  a  German 
named  Martin  tiucer.  He  had  been  a  Dominican  friar,  and  now 
obtained  the  Regius  professorsnip  of  divinity  at  Cambridge.  He  came 
in  1518,  but  had  retained  the  position  only  two  years  when  he  died. 
He  was  buried  with  much  honour  in  6t.  Mary's  Church  at  Cam- 
bridge, the  whole  university  attending  his  funeral.  The  third  wa« 
John  A'Lanca,  a  Polish  nobleman,  who  had  great  influence  over 
Cranmer,  and  became  a  sort  of  bishop  to  the  refugee  communities. 
Without  presuming  to  throw  doubt  upon  the  learning  or  in- 
tegrity of  these  men,  it  is  matter  for  devout  thankfulness,  both 
that  their  influence  went  as  far  as  it  did,  and  that  it  stopped 
where  it  did.  In  a  sense  the  English  and  Continental  reforma- 
tions went,  hand  in  hand,  and  each  gave  mutual  help  and  strength 
to  the  other  ;  but  many  of  the  foreign  reformers  were  rash  and 
obtrusive  men  who  seemed  unable  to  distinguish  Catholic  faith 
and  practice  from  papal  and  mediaeval  accretions  thereto. 
Those  who  settled  in  England  were  much  dissatisfied  with  the 
limited  extent  of  the  changes  made  in  the  new  English  Liturgy. 
In  deference  to  their  objections  steps  were  taken  to  revise  it.  Bucer 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY 


71 


*ad  Martyr  made  a  formal  report  of  their  criticisms  and  suggestions, 
bat  as  the  points  objected  to  were  not  altered  in  quite  the  way 
desired  by  them  after  all,  it  is  clear  that  the  divines  appointed  by 
Convocation  to  revise  the  book  did  not  intend  to  follow  their  lead 
blindlyy    An  indication  of  the  direction  taken  by  the  revisers  may 
be  seen  in  the  change  of  words  appointed  for  use  in  administering 
the  consecrated  elements  to  communicants.    The  first  book  contained 
only  the  first -part  of  the  words  now  used — down  to  'everlasting 
life"' — which  imply  the  efficacious  aspect  of  the  serv-ke  ;  bat  when 
the  revised  book  was   published  and  authorised  in  October,  1551,  it 
was  found  that  the  old  words  had  been  exchanged  for  the  second  pan 
of  those  now  used — beginning  '  take  and  eat,'  and  '  drink  this,'  &.C.— 
from  a  liturgy  compiled  by  John  A'  Lasco — which  indicate  its  memorial 
aspect  only.     The  second   book   abolished 
also  the  ancient  vestments  and  ornaments  of 
the  churches  allowed  in  the  first  book,  and 
substituted    the    word   'table'  for    'altar.' 
This   last  was  due  doubtless  to  the  influ- 
ence of  Bishop  Ridley,  who  in  his  episcopal 
visitations  had  caused"  the  altars  to  be  substi- 
tuted by  tables  in  the  body  of  the  churches. 
John  A'  Lasco  would  have  gone  further,  an*1 
made  communicants  sit  instead  of  kneel  to 
receive    For  the  other  and  numerous  changes 
the  reader  must  refer    to    works    dealing 
speciallv  with  the  Liturgy.    The  Act  of  Uni- 
formity (5  &  6  Ed.  VI., 
c.  1)  enforcing  the  use 
of  this  Second  Liturgy 
of   Edward     VI.    was 
not  passed  until  April, 
1552,  nor   was    it    to 
come    into    use    until 
November,  1552 ;   and 
as  no  order  was  made 
to   destroy   or   call  in 
copies  of  the  first  book 
it  is  not  probable  that 
the   second   one   came 
into  general  use  before 
:H,  CAMBBIDGE.  King  Edward  died. 

6.  The  Succession  to  the  Throne.— The  king's  sisters.  Mary 
and  Elizabeth,  were  sorely  tried  during  the  protectorates  of  Somerset 
and  Northumberland.  All  Henry's  children  were  by  different  wives  ; 
Mary  being  the  daughter  of  Catharine  of  Arragon,  Elizabeth  of  Anne 
TColeyn.  and  Edward  of  Jane  Sevmour.  Elizabeth's  tntor  was 


78  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES   ON 

Dr.  Matthew  Parker,  and  be  advised  her  to  conciliate  the  council  by 
jonforming  to  the  authorised  services.  Bat  Mary  was  no  longer 
under  tutelage,  and  resolutely  declined  to  forsake  her  cradle  faith  ; 
she  having  been  brought  up  by  her  mother  in  the  most  rigorous 
Spanish  fashion  to  believe  in  the  spiritual  and  temporal  autocracy  of 
the  pope.  The  council  tormented  her  by  sending  all  manner  of  men 
to  argue  with  her  upon  doctrine,  but  she  would  listen  to  none ; 
reserving  her  judgment  until  her  brother  came  of  age.  But  Edward 
sickened  and  was  like  to  die ;  and  Northumberland  saw  that  the 
accession  of  Mary  in  right  of  her  father's  will  would  mean  the  over- 
throw of  himself,  his  family,  and  the  reforming  principles  which  he 
had  so  assiduously  instilled  into  th«  young  king's  mind.  He  had 
married  his  son  Lord  Guildford  Dudley  to  the  Lady  Jane  Grey  ; 
granddaughter  of  Edward's  aunt,  Mary  Tudor  ;  and  hoped  to  retain 
power  by  securing  the  throne  for  his  daughter-in-law.  Henry  had 
arranged  by  his  will  that  the  succession  should  pass  to  the  children 
of  Mary  Tudor,  failing  any  heirs  to  his  daughters  Mary  and  Elizabeth 
when  they  in  turn  succeeded  to  the  throne ;  but  the  ambitious 
protector  fomented  King  Edward's  religious  susceptibilities  until 
he  agreed  to  alter  the  succession  by  passing  over  his  half-sisters  in 
immediate  favour  of  Lady  Jane  Grey,  without  the  consent  of  Parlia- 
ment such  as  Henry  was  careful  to  obtain,  thus  violating  the 
Constitution.  Edward  died  July  6,  1553.  Two  days  later,  and 
much  against  her  will,  Northumberland  proclaimed  Lady  Jane  as 
queen.  Mary  at  once  summoned  her  friends  and  marched  to  London, 
being  received  everywhere  with  enthusiasm.  Daily  her  adherenta 
increased  and  Northumberland's  waned.  Then  came  a  stern  reaction. 
Northumberland  was  arrested  and  beheaded  forthwith  ;  his  proteges 
being  sent  to  the  Tower.  The  position  of  ecclesiastical  parties  was 
thus  entirely  reversed  ;  for  as  Mary  had  been  closely  associated  with 
the  party  that  professed  to  believe  in  papal  supremacy,  it  naturally 
took  the  place  of  Edward's  government. 

8.  The  Marian  Bishops.— But  all  the  early  proceedings  of 
Mary's  reign  were  done  according  to  laws  made  and  examples  set  in 
the  previous  reign.  The  measures  framed  by  Edward's  council  to 
suppress  opponents  were  now  turned  against  the  men  that  made 
them.  The  six  imprisoned  bishops  were  at  once  released  from  con- 
finement as  an  act  of  royal  clemency.  The  next  business  was  to 
restore  them  to  the  sees  of  which  they  had  been  deprived  by  the 
council.  This  was  done  by  a  lay  commission  ;  which  deprived  in  turn 
the  bishops  by  whom  they  had  been  supplanted.  The  same  com- 
mission dispossessed  all  other  clergy  who  had  been  appointed  by 
Edward's  council  to  benefices  made  vacant  by  ita  deprivation  of 
incumbents  who  were  still  alive  ;  especially  those  in  high  office. 

Here  it  should  be  remembered  that  Convocation  consists  chiefly  of 
dignitaries  :  the  "  Upper  Houses  "  of  bishops  only  ;  and  the  "  Lower 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY.  73 

Houses  "  of  deans,  archdeacons,  and  proctors  elected  by  the  cathe- 
dral chapters  and  by  the  clergy.  But  the  proctors  of  the  clergy 
have  always  been  in  a  great  mino'rity  ;  e.g. — the  diocesan  representa- 
tion in  either  lower  house  of  Convocation  consists  of  the  dean,  two 
or  three  archdeacons  (these  are  ex-officio),  and  one  proctor  elected 
by  the  chapter  from  its  other  members  ;  while  the  other  clergy  of 
the  diocese  are  only  allowed  to  elect  two  representatives  ;  so  that 
the  representatives  "of  the  chapter  outnumber  the  representatives  of 
the  parochial  clergy  by  two  to  one.  Convocation  is  summoned  con- 
currently with  Parliament  and  a  general  election  of  proctors  takes 
place  at  the  same  time  as  the  general  election  of  members  to  Parlia- 
ment In  the  despotic  days  of  which  we  are  treating,  when  there 
was  very  little  freedom  of  election  and  many  "  pocket  boroughs,"  it 
was  comparatively  easy  for  the  Crown  and  Privy  Council  to  ensure 
the  return  to  Parliament  of  a  majority  favourable  to  their  policy. 
It  was  easier  still  to  pack  Convocation  with  subservient  members  ; 
for  the  bishops,  deans  and  other  dignitaries  were  Crown  appoint- 
ments ;  and  therefore  a  despotic  monarch  was  able  to  keep  matters 
firmly  within  grasp  on  seemingly  constitutional  lines  ;  especially  as 
the  irresponsible  power  accorded  to  kings  by  the  acts  of  supremacy 
enabled  them  to  incarcerate  and  to  punish  all  who  resisted  them. 

Mary's  first  Parliament  did  not  meet  until  October  5, 1553  ;  and  in 
the  meantime  occasion  had  been  found,  in  spite  of  Mary's  promise 
before  her  accession  not  to  compel  any  change  in  religion,  by  which 
those  who  favoured  the  ecclesiastical  proceedings  of  the  late  reign 
were  prevented  from  appearing  in  Convocation.  A  fanatic  threw  a 
dagger  at  one  of  the  queen's  chaplains  who  preached  at  St,  Paul's 
Cross  against  the  reformed  service  books.  This  gave  the  queen 
excuse  to  issue  a  proclamation  forbidding  all  unlicensed  preaching 
which  might  cause  dissension  "  until  such  time  as  further  order  by 
common  consent  may  be  taken  therein."  This  order  was  disobeyed 
by  the  leading  preachers  among  the  reformers,  and  they  were  at  once 
arrested  and  confined.  The  prelates  Cranmer  and  Ridley  had 
preached  strongly  in  favour  of  the  Lady  Jane  and  were  sent  to  the 
Tower  as  traitors  "until  further  order;'1  Hugh  Latimer,  who  had 
res'sned  his  bishopric  of  Worcester  in  Henry  '<  reign  through  dissatis- 
faction with  the  "  Six  Articles  Statute,"  and  had  refused  to  resume 
possession  on  the  deprivation  of  Heath — preferring  to  spend  his  time 
in  what  we  should  now  call  mission  preaching  throughout  the 
country — was  imprisoned  for  "seditious  demeanour;"  Bishops 
Hooper  and  Coverdale  following  him  for  preaching  without  licenses, 
as  did  many  others  of  lesser  degree.  The  foreign  reformers  were 
ordered  to  quit  the  country  with  their  congregations ;  which  they 
made  haste  to  do,  accompanied  by  many  of  the  English  clergy  and 
]»ity  who  feaied  that  the  prominent  parts  they  took  in  Church  reform 
would  bring  them  into  personal  danger.  No  one  was  prevented  fron: 
leaving  England.  The  Government  desired  to  gilence  opposition,  and 


74  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    ON 

if  the  reformers  did  not  care  for  voluntary  exile  occasion  was  sought  to 
put  them  under  ward.  Stephen  Gardiner,  the  restored  bishop  of  Win- 
chester, was  now  made  lord  chancellor ;  while  the  restored  bishops 
of  London  and  Durham  obtained  seats  in  the  Privy  Council.  When 
Parliament  met  it  declined  to  repeal  en  Hoc  the  religious  statutes  of 
Henry  and  Edward  relating  to  religion  and  the  divorce  at  the  bid- 
ding of  the  council,  but  it  ultimately  agreed  (1  Alary  c.  2)  to  repeal 
the  ecclesiastical  laws  of  Edward's  reign,  and  legitimate  Mary  by 
annulling  Queen  Catharine's  divorce  (1  Mary  c.  1).  This  brought 
Church  affairs  back  to  the  position  they  had  occupied  at  the  close  of 
King  Henry's  reign,  but  did  not  restore  papal  supremacy.  For 
nearly  two  years  the  royal  writs  ran  thus : — "  Mary,  by  the  grace  of 
God,  Supreme  Head  on  earth  of  the  Church  of  England."  The  repeal 
of  the  Edwardian  statutes  abolished  the  English  Service-books  in 
favour  of  the  old  Latin  Missals,  Breviaries,  etc.,  and  restored  the  Six 
Articles  Act  which  enforced  clerical  celibacy.  A  very  large  number 
of  bishops  and  clergy  were  thus  brought  within  the  power  of  the 
council,  and  the  Archbishop  of  York  (Holgate),  with  Bishops  Birde 
of  Chester,  Buche  of  Bristol — all  appointed  in  Henry's  reign — and 
Ferrar  of  St.  David's,  were  immediately  deprived  for  having  con- 
tracted matrimonial  alliances.  Bishop  Hooper,  of  Gloucester  and 
Worcester ;  Bishop  Skip,  of  Hereford ;  and  Bishop  Taylor,  of 
Lincoln  ;  were  also  deposed — because  they  had  been  consecrated  by 
"letters  patent"  instead  of  being  elected  by  the  chapters.  New 
bishops  were  then  elected  by  conget  d'elire  to  fill  their  places,  who 
were  prepared  to  deprive  all  clergy  in  their  dioceses  that  were 
amenable  to  the  revived  laws,  in  accordance  with  the  injunctions 
issued  by  Queen  and  Council  by  virtue  of  the  royal  supremacy.  The 
First  fruits  and  Tenths,  which  Henry  had  appropriated  to  the  Crown, 
were  soon  ordered  to  be  repaid  to  Rome  as  formerly ;  and  it  is  but 
just  to  Mary  to  point  out  that  she  restored  the  greater  part  of  Church 
lands  and  revenues  that  remained  in  the  hands  of  the  Crown. 

9.  The  Spanish  Match. — It  was  soon  known  that  Mary  had 
covenanted  to  marry  her  cousin  Philip,  who  was  heir  to  the  Spanish 
throne.  This  union  was  distasteful  to  the  general  public  ;  and  in 
January,  1554,  Sir  Thorn  an  Wijatt  roused  the  men  of  Kent,  who 
marched  to  London  with  the  intention  of  seizing  the  queen's  person, 
and  so  prevent  the  project  being  carried  out.  The  Duke  of  Suffolk 
was  concerned  in  this  rebellion,  which  gave  rise  to  a  suspicion  that 
the  restoration  of  his  daughter,  Lady  Jane  Grey,  was  its  real  object. 
Others  suggested  that  it  was  on  behalf  of  Princess  Elizabeth,. 
Suffolk,  Lady  Jane,  and  her  husband  Lord  Guildford  Dudley,  were 
all  beheaded ;  and  Wyatt  was  tortured  to  make  him  implicate  the 
Princess,  who  was  arrested  and  taken  to  the  Tower.  Wyatt  after- 
wards withdrew  the  false  accusations  forced  from  him  under  torture, 
and  was  executed ;  four  hundred  of  his  adherents  suffering  im  like 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY. 


7i 


manner.  The  most  astonishing  facts  in  those  dark  days  was  th« 
eaeer  study  of  religious  questions  by  the  nobility,  and  the  way  both 
lides  "searched  the  Scriptures"  to  find  authority  for  their  deeds. 
A  persecuting  spirit  was  abroad,  life  was  accounted  of  far  less  value 
than  now,  and  the  leaders  of  each  party,  believing  that  the  Word  of 
God  was  in  their  favour,  went  cheerfully  to  imprisonment,  exile  and 
death  for  the  cause  they  represented.  Princess  Elizabeth  was  con- 
sidered a  dangerous  rival  to  Mary,  especially  as  it  was  known  she 
favoured  the  religious  opinions  current  during  Edward's  reign,  and 
therefore  she  was  kept  confined.  Bishops  Gaidiner,  Bonuer,  and  Ton- 
stall  tried  to  induce  her  to  accept  the  pupal  interpretation  icepectiiip 


ELIZABETH  KiAMiNED  BY  TONSTAL,  BOSNER,  AND  GARDINER. 

the  mode  of  our  Lord's  presence  in  the  elements  of  bread  and  wine  at 
Holy  Communion,  but  she  was  very  diplomatic  in  her  replies.  A  famous 
verse  has  been  attributed  to  her  authorship  in  this  connexion : — 
"  Christ  was  the  Word  that  spake  it, 
He  took  the  bread  and  brake  it, 
And  what  the  Word  did  make  it, 
That  I  beliere  and  take  it." 

It  is  said  that  Elizabeth  owed  her  release  from  the  Tower  to 
Philip,  who  dreaded  to  leave  England  open  to  French  and  Scottish 


76  ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 

Intrigues.  But  she  was  kept  a  close  prisoner  at  Woodstock  and 
Hatfield,  and  compelled  to  conform  to  her  sister's  mode  of  worship. 
Mary's  marriage  took  place  in  July,  1554,  and  very  soon  the  worst 
fears  of  the  nation  were  realised ;  for  her  husband  was  a  stern,  cal- 
lous, and  implacable  man,  who  upheld  the  enormities  of  the  Sfianixh 
Inquisition — whose  autos-da-/^'  had  filled  all  Europe  with  horror — 
and  only  professed  clemency  to  a  few  that  he  might  be  able  to  throw 
the  blame  of  many  deaths  on  others.  He  brought  with  him  a  number 
of  Romish  clergy  whose  special  mission  was  to  reduce  England  to 
papal  obedience  and  promote  the  extirpation  of  "herntics."  One  of 
them  became  the  queen's  confessor,  and  others  succeeded  the  foreign 
reformers  as  professors  in  the  universities.  Writings  of  the  old 
schoolmen  like  St.  Thomas  Aquinas  were  made  the  subjects  of  study, 
in  place  of  the  classics  and  Early  Christian  Fathers  introduced  by 
Colet  and  Erasmus ;  and  steps  were  taken  to  obtain  legal  sanction 
for  extreme  measures  against  the  imprisoned  bishops  and  clergy,  by 
repealing  all  acts  relating  to  the  royal  supremacy  and  reviving  the 
statutes  passed  against  the  Lollards  in  the  reign  of  Henry  IV. 

10.  Reconciliation  with  Rome. — The  difficulty  in  the  way 
was  the  dissolution  and  plunder  of  the  monasteries.  So  many 
nobles  and  merchants  held  monastic  lands  that  Parliament  refused 
all  advances  made  to  it  by  Philip  and  Mary  for  reconciliation  with 
the  pope  until  the  latter  consented  to  confirm  the  alienation,  transfer 
and  sale  of  monastic  lands  to  their  present  possessors.  Mary  had 
personally  submitted  herself  to  the  pope  soon  after  her  accession, 
and  Cardinal  Pcle,  whom  the  pope  had  deputed  to  "  represent " 
England  at  the  Council  of  Trent  (notwithstanding  that  he  was  an 
outlaw  and  a  traitor  to  his  king),  was  nominated  extraordinary 
legate  to  this  country.  But  neither  Parliament  nor  the  council,  of 
which  Bishop  Gardiner  was  chief,  would  consent  to  his  landing  in 
England  so  long- as  the  bishop  of  Rome  declined  to  confirm  the 
disposition  of  monastic  estates,  and  the  rights  of  .patronage  acquired 
thereby.  At  length  the  pope  yielded  the  desired  point,  and  Cardinal 
Pole  entered  England  as  plenipotentiary,  November  24,  1554.  By 
that  time  there  was  a  new  Parliament,  and  consequently  a  new 
Convocation,  much  more  subservient  than  the  last.  These  were 
required  by  the  queen  to  desire  reconciliation  and  pardon  from  the 
legate,  requests  most  graciously  accorded  by  him,  the  members 
humbly  kneeling  to  receive  absolution.  As  was  hoped  by  the  queeu 
Parliament  showed  its  gratitude  by  repealing  all  the  acts  of  Henry's 
reign  subsequent  to  IT-.-  airected  against  the  papal  supremacy; 
but  the  legislature  was  shrewd  enough  to  insert  in  the  Statute  of 
Repeal  (1  &  2  Philip  and  Mary,  c.  8)  the  provisions  of  the  legatine 

1  A  Portuguese  phrase  meaning  an  act  of  faith—  deriv.  fr.  "  Auto"— (Lat.  actui) 
an  act;  "  da  "— (Lat  <fc)  of ;  and  "  fe"—  (Lat.  Jldet)  faitb— applied  to  the  ce-vmony 
of  b 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY.  77 

dispensation,  which  confirmed  the  titles  to  ecclesiastical  property, 
in  spite  of  all  Pole's  efforts  to  dissociate  the  subjects.  By  that  act 
the  statutes  against  Lollards  were  revived,  and  very  soon  enforced. 
The  following  bishops  were  appointed  commissioners  to  try  all 
persons  suspected  of  heresy :  Gardiner,  bishop  of  Winchester, 
president  ;  Tonstall,  bishop  of  Durham  ;  Thirlby,  bishop  of  Norwich  ; 
Aldridge,  bishop  of  Carlisle  ;  »nd  Bonner,  bishop  of  London  ;  all  of 
whom  were  consecrated  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII.  The  trials  took 
place  im  it.  Saviour'i  Church,  Southwark.  The  new  Convocation 
put  forth  three  propositions  as  the  test  of  heresy  ;  and  if  the  accused 
would  not  allow  them  to  be  true  they  were  forthwith  condemned — 
if  they  were  in  holy  orders  they  were  also  degraded  from  their  office 
— and  then  handed  over  to  the  secular  arm.  The  triple  test  was: 
(1)  Whether  the  natural  Body  of  Christ  be  really  present  under  the 
species  of  bread  and  wine  by  virtue  of  the  consecrating  words  spoken 
by  the  priest ;  (2)  Whether  the  substances  of  bread  and  wine  cease 
to  exist  after  consecration ;  and  (3)  Whether  the  M  ass  be  a 
propitiatory  sacrifice  for  the  sins  of  the  living  and  the  dead.  Unless 
the  accused  were  prepared  to  give  affirmative  replies  to  each,  and 
accept  the  pope's  supremacy,  they  had  not  much  hope  of  life.  No 
excuse  was  allowed  on  the  score  of  illiterateness  ;  nor  did  old  age, 
youth,  or  sex  excite  pity  or  pardon. 

11.  The  Marian  Persecutions.— The  first  four  to  be  arraigned 
before  the  commissioners  were  John  Hooper,  Bishop  of  Gloucester  ; 
John  Rogers  (otherwise  Mathews),  who  had  translated  the 
"  Mathew's  Bible  "  and  was  then  canon  of  St.  Paul's  and  vicar  of 
St.  Sepulchre's,  London  ;  Laurence  Saundert,  sometime  vicar  of 
Coventry  ;  and  Dr.  Rowland  Taylor,  parson  of  Hadleigh,  in  Suffolk. 
They  were  all  condemned  for  denying  "  Transubstantiation,"  and 
they  were  sentenced  to  be  burnt  in  the  places  where  they  had 
ministered,  in  order  that  their  parishioners  and  people  might  be 
terrified  into  renouncing  the  opinions  they  had  learned  from  the 
condemned  teachers.  But  this  arrangement  had  a  directly  contrary 
effect.  The  condemned  divines  met  their  deaths  so  bravely  that 
bystanders  felt  that  their  constancy  could  only  proceed  from  an 
ardent  conviction  that  the  doctrines  for  which  they  suffered  were 
true.  Several  contemporary  accounts  exist  of  those  times,  written 
by  independent  observers  of  high  character  who  were  in  no  way 
prejudiced  in  favour  of  the  reformers,  which  help  us  to  understand 
what  really  happened;  e.g.,  The  French  ambassador,  Noailleg,  who 
witnessed  the  martyrdom  of  Canon  Rogers  at  Smithfield,  records 
against  the  date,  February  4,  1555  : — "  This  day  was  celebrated  the 
confirmation  of  the  alliance  between  the  pope  and  this  kingdom,  by 
the  public  and  solemn  sacrifice  of  a  doctor  and  preacher  named  Rogers, 
who  was  burned  alive  for  holding  Lutheran  opinions,  persisting  till 
death  in  his  sentiment?  At  this  constancy  the  people  were  so 


78  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    <\V 

delighted  that  they  feared  not  to  strengthen  his  courage  by  their 
acclamations,  even  his  own  children 
joining,  and  consoling  him  after  such 
a  fashion  that  it  seemed  as  if  they  were 
conducting  him  to  his  nuptials."' 

Bishop  Hooper  was  sent  to  Gloucester 
and  suffered  on  February  9.  "  A  great 
vvind  blew  while  he  was  burning,  and 
hindered  the  flame  to  rise  up  and  choke 
him,  or  destroy  his  vitals,  so  that  he  was 
near  three-quarters-of-an-hour  in  great 
torment."2  Dr.  Taylor  was  burnt  in  his 
parish  on  the  same  day,  confirming  many 
of  his  people  by  his  courageous  demeaii- 

BisiiOi-  HOOPEE.  our;3  an(i  Mr.  Saunders  displayed  equal 

constancy  at  Coventry  the  day  before.  Bishop  Ferrar,  of  St.  David's, 
was  burnt  in  the  market  place  of  Carmarthen  on  March  30.  "  He  had 
told  a  gentleman  of  his  acquaintance  that  if  he  saw  him  in  the  least 
degree  shrink  when  in  the  flames,  he  might  fieely  disbelieve  all  the 
doctrines  which  he  had  taught.  No  such  shrinking  was  discernible, 
although  his  sufferings  were  greatly  prolonged."4  Bishop  Gardiner 
hoped  that  these  five  examples  would  terrify  the  people  into  sub- 
mission and  appease  the  appetite  of  the  court.  He  was  mistaken  in 
both  suppositions ;  for  the  reformers  were  eager  to  testify  their  faith 
in  their  blood,  and  the  council  pressed  the  bishops  to  be  more  zealous 
in  seeking  out  suspected  heretics.  Gardiner  and  Tonstall  declined 
to  imbrue  their  hands  further,  so  they  resigned  their  seats  on  the 
commission  ;  and  the  presidency  of  it  fell  to  Bonner,  bishop  of 
London,  who  seemed  determined  not  to  be  accused  of  slackness  in  the 
matter  ;  for  the  summaries  made  of  the  total  burnings  during  Mary's 
reign  in  England  and  Wales,  credit  the  diocese  of  London  with  128 
victims  out  of  a  total  of  286  1  Canterbury  diocese  (Cardinal  Pole's) 
contributed  fifty-five,  and  the  diocese  of  Norwich  (Bishop  Hopton's) 
forty-six.5  There  were  no  burnings  in  the  dioceses  of  Lincoln, 
Durham,  Carlisle,  Bath  and  Wells,  Hereford  or  Worcester.  The 
chief  place  among  the  martyrs  must  always  be  accorded  to  Arch- 
bishop Cranmer,  and  Bishops  Latimer  and  Kidley,  because  of  their 
prominent  work  in  guiding  the  reforms  of  Edward's  reign  and  framing 
the  English  Service  books.  No  one  had  power  to  condemn  the 
archbishop  and  metropolitan  except  the  pope,  because  he  had 
been  appointed  by  papal  bulls.  (See  page  34).  All  three  prelates 

1  Quoted  in  "  Perry's  Student's  Church  History,"  Volume  2. 

2  Burnet's  History  of  the  Reformation. 

3  On  a  stone  erected  at  the  spot  may  still  be  seen  "  1555,  D.  Tayler  in  defending 
that  was  good,  At  this  place  left  his  blode." 

4  Student's  Church  History,  Vol.  2. 

6  The  summaries  that  have  been  made  of  the  total  number  burnt  do  not  agree. 
Many  of  the  sufferers  were  women,  and  some  were  children. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH  HISTORY.  79 

had  been  imprisoned  in  Oxford  since  the  autumn  of  1553 
they  having  been  sent  there  to  have  their  tenets  confuted  publicly 
by  Romanist  divines ;  but  on  September  30th,  1555,  Latimer  and 
Ridley  were  brought  out  for  trial.  After  a  brief  disputation  they 
were  condemned  to  die  together.  The  story  of  their  sufferings  has 
been  told  so  often,  that  we  need  not  tell  it  again  at  any  length.  The 
stake  was  erected  opposite  Balliol  College,  and  they  were  fastened  to 
it  back  to  back  by  a  single  chain.  A  relative  of  Bishop  Ridley  pro- 
vided bags  of  gunpowder  to  hang  round  their  necks  to  shorten  their 
agony.  Honest  old  Latimer,  who  never  once  wavered  through  all 
these  troubled  times ;  and  had  never  ceased  to  denounce  unsparingly 
every  species  of  vice,  especially  vice  in  high  places,  which  caused 
some  to  give  him  the  distinguishing  title  of  the  apostle  of  the 
reformation  ;  ended  his  life  in  a  characteristic  way.  As  soon  as  the 
faggots  were  lighted  he  cheered  his  partner  with  the  ever  memorable 
prophecy  "  Be  of  good  comfort  Master  Ridley,  and  play  the  man ;  we 
shall  this  day  light  such  a  candle,  by  God's  grace,  in  England,  as  I 
trust  shall  never  be  put  out."  He  had  hardly  time  to  commend  his 
soul  to  God  before  the  flames  reached  the  powder,  and  his  sufferings 
were  over.  But  the  same  wind  which  carried  the  flames  to  Latimer 
blew  them  away  from  Ridley,  and  the  faggots  would  not  burn.  His 
feet  and  legs  were  roasted  but  his  vitals  were  untouched.  A  friend 
piled  on  more  wood,  but  that  only  choked  the  flame  ;  and  not  until 
a  bystander  stirred  the  heap  of  embers  did  the  flames  reach  the  gun- 
powder and  end  his  pain.  Archbishop  Cranmer  was  not  put  to  death 
until  the  following  year.  He  alone  of  all  the  reformers  loved  his  life 
more  than  his  faith.  His  action  was  fearful  and  fitful  all  through. 
"  Like  a  poor  bird  entangled  in  a  snare, 

Whose  heart  still  flutters,  though  his  wings  forbear 

To  stir  in  useless  struggle." 

He  was  persuaded  over  and  over  again  by  his  enemies  to  believe  th-U 
a  pardon  would  be  granted  if  he  would  recant  certain  passages  in  his 
writings  and  public  disputations. 
The  Romanists  felt  that  if  the  leader 
of  the  Reformation  could  be  in- 
duced to  deny  its  principles  a  fatal 
blow  would  be  struck  against  it. 
No  less  than  seven  different  docu- 
ments were  signed  by  Cranmer, 
each  more  galling  and  humiliating 
than  their  predecessors,  until  lie 
had  admitted  himself  to  be  every- 
thing that  was  vile.  But  the  par- 
don for  which  he  looked  came  not. 
They  told  him  it  should  be  given 
publicly,  after  a  public  recantation.  LATIMEB  AND  RIDLEY. 
He  agreed  to  that  also,  but  it  did  not  fall  out  as  intended  by  his  foes 


80  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES   ON 

On  Saturday,  March  21, 1556,  a  wet  and  stormy  day,  he  was  conducted 
through  the  streets  of  Oxford  to  St.  Mary's  Church  ;  but  when  the 
time  for  recantation  came  he  surprised  the  congregation  and  his 
enemies  by  repudiating  all  bis  previous  recantations,  and  declared 
that  the  hand  which  signed  them  should  burn  first  when  they  brought 
him  to  the  stake.  His  revengeful  persecutors  were  bitterly  mortified, 
and  hurried  him  out  of  the  church  to  the  pyre  hard  by,  where 
bis  fellow-bishops  had  suffered  six  months  before  ;  and  there,  true  to 
his  promise,  when  the  flames  were  kindled,  Cranmer  held  his  right 
hand  over  them  until  it  was  entirely  consumed  ;  repeating  all  the 
while  "this  unworthy  hand."  The  next  day  Cardinal  Pole  was 
appointed  to  the  primacy  thus  rendered  vacant.  The  papal  bull 
containing  Cranmer's  sentence  declared  that  he  was  condemned  "  for 
bringing  in  the  false  and  heretical  doctrines  of  Wycliffe  and  Luther." 
The  burnings  continued  until  the  end  of  the  reign,  and  with  increas- 
ing bitterness  ;  any  expressions  of  pity  for  the  victims  from  bystanders 
being  prohibited  by  proclamation.  The  last  human  sacrifice  of  this 
reign  was  offered  at  Canterbury,  in  November,  1558,  when  five 
persons  were  immolated.  They  prayed  when  at  the  stake  that  they 
might  be  the  last  so  executed,  and  their  prayers  were  answered. 
These  executions  did  more  than  anything  else  to  make  Englishmen 
execrate  everything  that  harmonised  with  the  Church  of  Rome,  and 
heap  infamy  on  Queen  Mary ;  who  saw  too  late  that  it  was  impossible 
to  quench  a  movement  which  had  been  growing  and  strengthening 
for  generations.  It  will  not  do  to  try  and  account  for  the  struggle 
on  political  or  patriotic  grounds,  connected  with  the  question  of 
papal  supremacy,  merely.  It  was  far  more  than  that ;  for  many 
persons  were  burnt  solely  because  of  their  opinions  on  matters  of 
faith  and  ritual,  and  died  in  the  belief  that  they  were  witnessing  to 
Truth,  restoring  worship  to  primitive  simplicity,  and  setting  Apostolic 
doctrine  free  from  the  bondage  of  superstition.  Yet  it  cannot  be 
forgotten  that  each  party  which  came  into  power  adopted  similar 
methods  of  repressing  those  who  opposed  its  religions  policy. 

12.  The  Exiled  Reformers. — We  must  now  follow  those  who 
escaped  in  the  early  part  of  the  reign  from  these  dire  persecutions. 
Many  fled  to  France  and  Geneva,  but  most  to  Frankfort.  They 
included  several  bishops,  viz.  :  Scory,  Coverdale  and  Poynet,  conse- 
crated in  Edward's  reign  ;  and  £arlow,  bishop  of  Bath  and  Wells, 
who  was  consecrated  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII.  There  were 
several  deans  and  archdeacons  besides,  and  many  learned  clergy  who 
afterwards  became  eminent  such  as  Jeivel,  Knox,  Orindal  and  others  j 
besides  a  large  number  of  influential  laymen  with  their  families. 
All  were  prominent  persons  connected  with  the  Reformation,  other- 
wise their  escape  would  not  have  been  necessary.  They  were  a 
mixed  company  with  diverse  opinions  and  could  neither  agree  among 
themselves  or  live  at  peace  among  those  who  sheltered  them.  Some 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY. 


desired  to  use  the  English  service  books,  others  did  not;  and  the 
Frankfort  settlement  was  marred  by  such  sharp  contentions  that  the 
magistracy  had  to  interfere.  The  chief  antagonists  were  John  Knox 
and  Dr.  Cox,  and  the  dispnte  ended  by  the  expulsion  of  Knox  from 
the  city.  These  '  Troubles 
of  Frankfort '  sowed  the 
seed  of  much  recrimination 
afterwards ;  especially  as 
each  section  of  the  exiles, 
in  one  city  or  another,  had 
no  determined  opinions  as 
to  discipline  or  ceremonial ; 
for  some  became  Zwinglian, 
others  Lutheran,  some  Ana- 
baptists and  others  Calvin- 
istic,  and  each  intolerant  of 
its  neighbour.  In  England 
meanwhile  Cardinal  Pole 
had  instituted  a  general 
visitation  of  the  dioceses 
and  universities  (1557)  for 
the  extermination  of  all 
books  and  relics  of  the  re- 
formers. At  Cambridge 
Bucer's  bones  were  ex- 
humed, and  burnt  upon  a 
pile  of  his  books.  Peter 
Martyr's  wife  had  died 
during  his  residence  at  Ox- 
ford, and  her  bones  were 
taken  from  the  consecrated 
ground  in  which  they  had 
been  laid,  and  buried  in  MARTYBS'  MEMOHIAL,  OXFORD. 
a  dunghill  as  a  perjured  religiev*r.  The  Jesuit  Father*  much 
wished  to  make  this  country  a  happy  hunting  ground  for  their 
system,  but  Cardinal  Pole  objected  to  their  ways.  This  brought 
the  enmity  of  Rome  upon  him,  and  his  legatine  commission 
was  revoked,  Cardinal  Peto  being  appointed  in  his  stead.  Queen 
Mary  resented  this  action  of  the  pope  and  threatened  to  punish 
Peto  under  the  old  statutes  of  Pramunire  if  he  ventured  to 
land  in  England  as  legate  !  So  that  even  in  Mary's  submissive  reign  the 
pope's  authority  was  not  quite  absolute.  Mary  died  November  1 7, 
1558,  of  a  broken  heart;  brought  on  by  her  husband's  neglect,  the 
loss  of  Calais,  and  the  failure  of  her  religious  projects.  Within  the 
next  24  hours  Cardinal  Pole  died  also.  Princess  Elizabeth  at  once 
assumed  sovereignty  ;  and  again  the  political  and  religious  afiairs  o; 
the  country  underwent  a  revolution. 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

CHAPTER    XX. 

UNDER  THE  VIRGIN  QUEEN. 

"'All  hail,  sage  lady,  whom  a  grateful  isle 
Hath  blest,  respiring  from'.that  dismal  war 
Stilled  by  thy  Toice  1    But  quickly  from  afar 
Defiance  breathes  with  more  malignant  »iin  ; 
And  alien  storms  with  home-bred  ferments  claim 
Portentous  fellowship."  — Wordtwortk. 

1.  Restoration  of  the  Royal  Supremacy.— The  new  queen 
began  her  reign  warily,  and  there  were  no  sudden  changes.  Many 
counsellors  of  the  late  reign  were  retained  to  advise  and  direct,  and 
the  bishops  escorted  her  from  Highgate  to  London  amid  the  acclama- 
tions of  the  people  1  At  the  samt  time  it  was  so  very  well  known 
that  Elizabeth  had  inherited  a  preference  for  the  reformers,  that  the 
exiles  trooped  back  merrily  ;  accompanied  by  many  indiscreet  persons 
who  determined  to  overthrow  by  violence  all  religious  ceremonies, 
and  set  up  modes  of  worship  according  to  their  own  sweet  will.  But 
their  innovations  and  iconoclasm  were  promptly  suppressed.  A 
proclamation  was  issued  (December  27)  forbidding  any  kind  of 
service  other  than  that  which  was  issued  at  the  close  of  Henry's 
reign  until  the  three  estates  of  the  realm  could  be  called  together  to 
advise.  This  proclamation  reassured  disquieted  minds  and  probably 
prevented  a  revolution.  In  due  course  Elizabeth's  accession  was 
notified  to  the  various  courts  of  Europe  including  that  of  Pope  Paul 
IV.;  but  the  hitter  replied  in  insolent  terms  that  England  was  a  fief 
of  the  Papacy,  and  that  Elizabeth  had  no  right  to  assume  royal  sway 
without  his  authority;  adding  that  as  her  mother's  marriage  was 
invalid  she  had  no  legitimate  claim  to  the  throne  at  all,  but  if  she 
would  follow  her  sister's  example  by  accepting  the  supremacy  of  the 
popes  he  might  condescend  to  allow  her  to  reign  I.  His  message  was 
treated  as  it  deserved,  but  it  altered  the  attitude  of  the  Marian  bishops 
towards  Elizabeth.  She  was  crowned  on  the  13th  of  January  by 
BisJiop  Offlethorjte,  of  Carlisle ;  but  the  other  prelates  refused  to 
recognise  or  attend  the  ceremony.  Lord  Burleigh  was  then  made 
Prime  Minister,  and  he  recommended  that  the  queen's  late  tutor, 
Dr.  Parker,  who  had  lived  in  close  retirement  during  Mary's  reign, 
should  be  chief  counsellor  in  Church  affairs.  The  people  proved  loyal 
at  the  elections,  and  Elizabeth's  first  parliament  met  on  the  25th  of 
January.  All  the  bills  submitted  to  it  related  to  ecclesiastical 
affairs.  The  first  statute  passed,  after  a  long  and  hot  debate  of  two 
months'  duration,  revived  the  ancient  jurisdiction  of  the  Crown  over 
all  estates  in  the  realm  ;  wisely  substituting  Supreme  Governor  for 
the  objectionable  title  supreme  '  Head.'  This  was  a  very  effective 
leply  to  Paul  IV.  TLe  act  was  a  most  comprehensive  one.  It 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY.  83 

repealed  all  the  religious  acts  of  Mary's  reign,  and  restored  those 
which  were  in  force  at  Edward's  death.  As  some  of  the  latter  had 
proved  mischievous,  saving  clauses  were  inserted  in  it  to  correct 
their  unsatisfactory  parts ;  such  as  the  interference  with  the  ancient 
privilege  that  cathedral  chapters  should  have  '  leave  to  elect '  their 
bishops.  The  prelates  who  owed  their  preferment  to  Mary's  govern- 
ment strongly  opposed  the  passage  of  the  measure  at  every  stage,  as 
indeed  they  did  all  the  acts  of  that  session,  but  it  passed  into  law  on 
April  20th.  The  episcopal  opposition  must  be  looked  upon  in  the 
light  of  the  recent  persecutions.  Several  of  the  bishops  had  accepted 
the  principles  of  the  bills  under  Henry  and  Edward  ;  but  they  had 
taken  an  opposite  course  under  Mary,  and  shed  much  blood  in 
furtherance  of  their  changed  opinions.  It  was  not  to  be  expected 
that  they  would  now  condemn  the  late  martyrdoms  by  countenancing 
principles  which  a  few  months  before  they  had  rigorously  prosecuted 
as  the  most  terrible  of  human  offences.  The  Succession  Act  provided 
for  the  establishment  of  a  High  Commission  Caurt,  which  should 
examine  and  decide  upon  ecclesiastical  causes,  from  whose  judgment 
there  should  be  no  appeal.  It  was  not  to  allow  any  doctrines  to  be 
'  heresy  '  unless  the  Scriptures  or  the  decisions  of  the  four  Catholic 
Councils  declared  them  to  be  so.  We  shall  hear  of  it  again.  Naturally 
the  annates  and  first  fruits  were  again  denied  to  the  see  of  Borne, 
but  Elizabeth  followed  her  father's  example  by  appropriating  them 
to  Crown  uses,  so  that  the  clergy  continued  to  groan  under  the  burden. 
It  was  not  lightened  until  the  eighteenth  century. 

2.  The  Restoration  of  the  Liturgy. — Concurrently  with 
the  new  Act  of  Supremacy,  Parliament  discussed  a  new  Act  of 
Uniformity  with  reference  to  public  worship.  Convocation  possesses 
the  sole  right  of  regulating  doctrinal  and  devotional  matters ;  but  as 
it  was  not  advisable  for  the  new  government  to  imitate  Mary's 
counsellors  by  forcibly  "packing"  that  assembly,  and  as  the  con- 
temporary Convocation  was  known  to  be  opposed  to  any  new  re- 
vision of  the  Latin  Service-books,  it  was  decided  to  fall  back  upon 
the  English  Books  of  Common  Prayer  which  had  already  received 
the  sanction  of  a  previous  Convocation.  A  commission  was  appointed 
to  revise  them,  with  Dr.  Parker  for  its  president,  which  included 
many  returned  exiles ;  but  it  did  not  favour  the  queen's  desire  to 
restore  the  ceremonial  of  the  First  English  Book.  The  Privy  Council 
felt  that  moderate  measures  were  needed  to  ensure  the  stability  of 
the  throne,  and  that  the  nation  would  not  consent  to  forego  ancient 
religious  customs  merely  to  please  the  few  who  advocated  modern 
Swiss  and  German  practices.  Meanwhile  a  public  disputation  was 
held  at  Westminster,  and  attended  by  the  members  of  Parliament,  at 
to  the  right  of  National  Churches  to  decree  rites  and  ceremonies 
in  accordance  with  the  Word  of  God  ;  and  as  to  whether  the 
Scriptures  forbade  public  worship  in  the  vernacular,  or  justified 

D  2 


84  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

the  theory  that  the  Eucharist  was  a  propitiatory  sacrifice  for  the 
sins  of  quick  and  dead.  The  disputants  were  selected  from  the 
learned  Mariau  clergy  and  those  which  had  occupied  similar  positions 
under  Edward  VI. ;  but  the  former  disregarded  the  conditions  of 
debate  mutually  agreed  upon  beforehand,  and  so  brought  the  dis- 
cussion to  an  abrupt  termination.  Bishops  White,  of  Winchester, 
and  Watson  of  Lincoln,  declared  that  the  Queen  and  Council 
deserved  excommunication  for  expecting  them  to  argue  upon  such 
matters,  for  which  seditious  language  they  were  compelled  to  spend 
a  little  season  in  the  Tower  of  London.  The  ultimate  result  of  these 
preliminaries  may  be  best  expressed  in  the  words  of  the  statute. 

"tUbcreas,  at  the  death  of  oar  late  Sovereign  lord  king  Edward  VI.,  there 
"  remained  one  uniform  order  of  common  service  and  prayer  ....  authorised  by 
"  Act  of  Parliament,  holden  in  the  5th  and  6th  years  of  our  said  late  Sovereign  lord 
"king  Edward  VI.,  entitled  'An  Act  for  the  Uniformity  of  Common  Prayer,  and 
"  administration  of  the  Sacraments'  the  which  was  repealed  and  taken  away  by 
"  Act  of  Parliament  in  the  first  year  of  our  late  Soveitign  lady  queen  Mary,  to  the 
"  great  decay  of  the  due  honour  of  God,  and  discomfort  to  professors  of  the  truth  of 
"  Chriit's  religion. 

"  JGe  it  therefore  enacted,  by  the  authority  of  this  preient  Parliament,  that  the 
"said  statute  of  repeal,  and  everything  therein  contained  concerning  the  said 
1  book  ....  skull  be  void  and  of  none  effect  ....  and  that  the  said 
"  book  ....  shall  stand,  and  be  in  full  force  and  effect,  according  to  the  tenor 
"  of  this  statute,  anything  in  the  aforesaid  statute  of  repeal  to  the  contrary  notwith- 
"  standing. 

"Hnd  further  be  it  enacted that  all  and  singular  ministers,  In  any 

"  cathedral  or  parish  church,  shall  from  and  after  the  feast  of  the  Nativity  of 
"John  Baptist  next  coming,  be  bounden  to  say  and  use  the  Matins,  Evensong, 
"  Celebration  of  the  Lord's  Supper  and  administration  of  each  of  the  Sacraments, 
"  and  all  their  common  and  open  prayer,  in  such  order  and  form  as  is  mentioned 
"in  the  said  book,  so  authorised  by  Parliament  in  the  said  6th  and  6th  years  of 
"  King  Edward  VI.,  -with,  one  alteration  or  addition  of  certain  Lessons  to  be  used 
"  on  every  Sunday  in  the  year,  and  the  form  tf  the  litany  altered  and  corrected, 
"and  two  sentences  only  added  in  the  delivery  of  the  Sacrament  to  the  communi- 
"  cants,  and  none  otker,  or  otherwise." 

The  alteration  mentioned  in  the  Litany  was  the  omission  of  the 
suffrage  respecting  the  bishop  of  Rome  (see  page  39)  and  a  slight 
addition  to  the  petition  for  the  monarch's  good  life.  The  change  in 
the  Communion  Office  was  merely  the  combination  of  the  old  aiid 
new  sentences  (page  71)  by  which  the  words  of  administration 
iwnumed  their  present  form.  There  were  two  other  alterations  not 
•mentioned  in  the  act,  viz.: — the  omission  of  the  rubric  as  to  kneeling 
*t  the  end  of  the  Communion  Office,  which  a  subsequent  Convocation 
restored  ;  and  the,  insertion  of  the  "  Ornaments  Rubric  "  just  before 
^he  daily  Matins,  retained  in  all  subsequent  revisions,  which  revived 
«>eve8ttnentr  si"1  chancel  arrangements  'as  were  in  this  Otuich  of 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY.  81 

England  by  the  authority  of  Parliament  in  the  second  year  of  the 
reign  of  King  Edward.'  It  was  very  irregular  for  the  Queen  and 
Parliament  to  make  these  emendations  without  the  consent  of  Con- 
vocation, but  the  end  excused  the  means  ;  and  there  is  cause  for  thank- 
fulness that  no  attempt  was  made  to  do  more  than  appease  the 
conflicting  parties.1  The  use  of  the  Second  Book  of  Edward's  reign 
satisfied  all  but  the  revolutionary  reformers, and  the  carefully  judged 
additions,  omissions,  and  corrections,  conciliated  all  but  the  extremest 
partisans  of  Rome.  On  April  28,  after  a  protracted  discussion,  the  Act 
of  Uniformity  became  law  (1  Eliz.  c.  2),  and  although  there  was  no 
obligation  to  use  the  Book  before  June  24  it  immediately  came  into 
general  use.  An  objection  was  subsequently  made  by  Bishop 
Bonner  that  the  '  Ordinal '  was  illegal,  because  not  expressly  men- 
tioned in  the  Statute.  To  remove  all  doubt  a  short  act  was  passed 
later  on,  explaining  that  the  Ordination  Service,  having  been  bound 
up  with  the  '  Second  Book,'  was  understood  to  be  part  of  the  Book, 
and  therefore  legalised  by  the  Statute  of  Uniformity. 

3.  The  Vacant  Bishoprics. — Besides  the  primacy  six  sees 
were  vacated  by  d^eath  before  the  accession  of  Elizabeth  : — Oxford 
(December,  1557),  Salisbury  (April,  1558),  Bangor  (May,  1558), 
Gloucester  and  Hereford  (September,  1558),  and  Bristol  (November, 
1558)  ;  and  two  bishops  died  after  the  accession,  but  before  the  above 
acts  were  passed,  viz. : — Norwich  (December,  1558),  and  Chichester 
(January  2,  1559),  There  were  therefore  only  sixteen  bishops  in 
possession  of  sees  out  of  an  episcopate  of  twenty-five.  On  May  15, 
after  they  had  been  given  time  to  consider  the  new  statutes,  these 
sixteen  prelates  were  summoned  to  the  queen  that  they  might  take 
the  oath  of  supremacy.  With  the  single  exception  of  the  bishop  of 
Llandaff  they  all  refused.  The  act  provided  that  any  refusal  of  the 
oath  incurred  forfeiture  of  any  public  position  in  Church  or  Realm. 
The  bishops  were  therefore  deprived.  But  not  all  at  once.  There 
was  no  harsh  treatment,  such  as  was  extended  to  their  predecessors 
by  Mary,  and  they  knew  well  that  their  lives  were  secure.  The 
names  of  the  bishops  are  appended  in  the  footnote,*  in  the  order  of 
their  deprivation,  from  which  it  is  clear  that  every  opportunity  was 
given  the  least  objectionable  ones  to  alter  their  minds  before  any 
attempt  was  made  to  fill  the  sees  vacated  by  their  disloyalty. 

1  The  late  Mr.  Wayland  Joyce,  who  published  a  work  called  "Aeit  of  the  Church  " 
jn=t  before  his  dealt  in  1887,  claimed  to  have  discovered  a  document  which  goes  to 
suo>v  that  these  alterations  had  first  received  the  sanction  ol  an  Episcopal  synod, 
but  this  requires  confirming. 

2  The  fourteen  bishops  deprired  were  as  follows  -.—Banner  of  London  (deprived 
June  2, 1569),  Scott  of  Chester  and  Oglethorpt  of  Carlisle  (June  21),  Morgan  of  St. 
David's  and  Bainei  of  Lichfield  (June  34),  Pott  of  Worcester  (June  30),  Watton  of 
Lincoln  (July  2),  Goldifell  of  St.  Asaph  (July  15),  White  ol  Winchester  (July  1«), 
B'nth.  irchbishopof  York,  and  Tons/all,  bishop  of  Durham  (September  29),  Bourne 
ol  Bath  aud  Wells  anri  Poole  of  Peterboro'  (November  11),   Turb'rriUr  ol  Ex.  ter 
(November  16),  and  Thurlby  of  T'ly  (November  25).    Bishop  Orijftth  of  Rochester 
was  not  deprived.    He  had  long  been  lick  and  he  died  on  November  20. 


86 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


Bishops  White  and  Watson  had  been  sent  to  the  Tower  temporarily, 
as  a  punishment  for  their  seditious  conduct  at  the  Westminster 
disputation,  but  they  were  soon  released  and  allowed  to  go  abroad 
with  pensions  ;  as  were  Bishops  Pate,  Scott  and  Goldwell  later  on. 
Bishop  Bonner,  whose  part  in  the  late  persecutions  had  brought  him 
much  odium  was  confined  in  the  Marshalsea  prison,  chiefly  for  fear 
of  the  mob ;  but  the  remainder  were  consigned  to  the  custody  of 
their  friends,  or  committed  to  the  care  and  hospitality  of  the  bishops 
who  obtained  their  places.  Three  of  them,  Bishops  Poole  and 
Turberville,  and  Archbishop  Heath,  were  allowed  to  reiire  upoo 
their  private  estates,  the  last  named  being  often  visited  by  Queoi 
Elizabeth.  This  lenient  treatment  of  refractory  prelates  compared 
favourably  with  the  harsh  measures  of  the  preceding  reiyn.  Accounts 
Jo  not  agree  as  to  the  total  number  of  clergy  who  refused  to  accept 
th«  Oath  of  Supremacy  and  Act  of  Uniformity;  some  say  189,  others 
296 — but  no  list  exceeds  400.  And  there  were  9,-iOO  clergy  at  the 
time.  In  other  words  an  overwhelming  majority,  more  than  twenty 
to  one.  of  the  clergy  accepted  the  restored  supremacy  and  liturgy 
with  more  or  less  cheerfulness.  When  w<»  consider  further  who  the 

few  .objectors  were  we 
find  that  they  had  nearly 
all  been  appointed  by 
the  papal  advisers  of 
Queen  Mary  to  bene- 
fices in  crown  patronage 
because  they  were  well 
known  to  be  staunch 
upholders  of  papal  pre- 
tensions. Nothing  can 
demonstrate  with  more 
clearness  than  this  the 
continuance  of  the  old 
Church  of  the  Nation. 
In  spite  of  the  rapid 
and  drastic  changes 
hundreds  of  clergy  of 
all  grades  were  able  to 
retain  their  benefices 
from  before  the  close 
of  Henry's  reign  to  well 
on  into  that  of  Eliza- 
beth. The  very  rapidity 
with  which  one  govern- 
ment succeeded  another 

QUEEN  ELIZABETH.  prevented  any  complete 

change  in  the  personnel  of  the  Church,  even  had  such  a  measure 
been  desirable.  Every  tfficial  document  of  Elizabeth's  reign 


ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY.  w 

tepresdy  disclaim*  any  intention  of  breaking  the  Church's  con- 
tinuky.  But  there  was  a  source  of  great  danger  to  th«  Church 
from  the  defection  of  the  bishops.  Many  of  the  returned  exiles 
affected  to  care  nothing  for  the  episcopal  office  and  saw  no  ment 
therein,  but  sober-minded  and  faithful  men  knew  that  "  from  the 
apostles'  time  there  had  ever  been  three  orders  of  ministers  in 
Christ's  Church — bishops,  priests,  and  deacons  "—and  that  the  regular 
succession  of  bishops  had  always  been  the  acknowledged  con- 
nexion between  the  apostolic  root  and  national  branches  of  the  one 
holy  and  universal  Church.  But  the  saocession,  though  endangered, 
was  not  lost.  Among  the  exMe«  were  several  of  the  bishops  who  had 
been  forcibly  deprived  in  Mary's  reign  without  any  ca*tnical protest. 
These  had  returned  to  England;  and  when  the  still  undeprived 
Marian  bishops  declined  to  aid  in  consecrating  successors  to  the  sees 
which  had  been  vacated  by  death,  they  were  appointed  to  perform 
the  requisite  episcopal  acts ;  every  care  being  taken  that  all  shoaid 
be  done  rightly  and  canonically,  so  that  none  should  have  occasion 
of  cavil  thereafter. 

4.  Consecration  of  Archbishop  Parker.— The  most  important 
business  was  to  consecrate  a  successor  to  the  primacy  in  the  place 
of  Cardinal  Pole,  who  died  soon  after  Queen  Mary.  Dr.  Parker  was 
nominated  by  Elizabeth  and  duly  elected  by  the  Dean  and 
Chapter  of  Christ's  Church,  Canterbury,  by  virtue  of  the  custom- 
ary oongk  d'ilire,  August  1,  1559.  On  September  9  a  commission 
was  issued  to  six  bishops,  three  Edwardian  and  three  Marian,  for  his 
consecration,  but  the  latter  declined  to  officiate,  as  they  had  refused 
to  take  part  in  the  coronation,  and  four  more  Edwardian  bishops 
were  named  in  their  stead  (December  6).  Of  the  seven  thus  nomi- 
nated, any  four  of  whom  were  empowered  to  act,  although  three 
would  have  been  sufficient  to  ensure  a  valid  consecration,  the  follow- 
ing were  in  attendance  on  December  17,  the  day  of  consecration  : — 
William  Barlow,  consecrated  in  Henry's  reign,  1536,  to  be  bishop 
of  St.  Asaph ;  John  Scory,  who  had  been  consecrated  to  Rochester 
in  Edward's  reign,  1651,  and  appointed  to  Chichester  1552  ; 
Milet  Coverdalf,  the  translator  of  the  Bible,  made  suffragan  bishop 
in  the  reign  of  Henry,  and  appointed  to  the  see  of  Exeter 
in  Edward's  reign ;  and  John  Hodghins,  suffragan  bishop  of 
Bedford,  also  of  the  reign  of  Edward.  These  details  are  given 
because  fictitious  rumours  were  propagated  half  a  century  later 
intended  to  throw  suspicion  on  the  validity  of  Parker's  consecration, 
which  are  still  revived  on  occasion  by  Romanists.  No  official  act  was 
ever  more  carefully  and  accurately  performed.  It  is  very  rare  tint 
the  details  of  a  ceremony  in  those  days  are  so  minutely  recorded 
as  the  circumstance  of  his  consecration.  It  took  place  in  the  Chapel 
of  Lambeth  Palace  December  17,  1559,  in  the  presence  of  a  goodly 
gathering.  The  ceremony  within  the  Altar  rails,  as  tw  as  can  b* 


88  ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  0A 

j  udged  from  the  copious  reports,  was  sketched  some  years  ago  by  Mr. 
Dyce,  R.A.,  who  bequeathed  his  unfinished  picture  to  Mr.  George 
Richmond,  R.A.,  and  the  latter  has 
kindly  allowed  it  to  be  reproduced  as 
our  frontispiece.  The  picture  is  not  free 
from  anachronisms,  few  pictures  are  that 
were  painted  300  years  after  the  event, 
but  it  helps  us  to  realise  a  most  impor- 
tant act.  The  records  state  that  the 
Neast  end  of  Lambeth  Palace  Chapel  was 
'  adorned  at  the  time  with  tapestry,  and 
that  the  floor  was  covered  with  red  cloth. 
Only  the  actual  ceremony  is  depicted, 
but  there  were  numerous  eye-witnesses 
besides  in  the  body  of  the  chapel.  Dr. 
AECHBISHOP  PARKEB.  Thomas  Yale  read  the  royal  mandate  for 
the  consecration,  and  the  service  proceeded  according  to  the  English 
Ordinal.  Bishop  Barlow,  as  the  senior  consecrator,  is  seated ;  and  we 
learn  from  the  records  that  he  was  arrayed  in  a  silk  cope,  as  were 
Archdeacons  Bullingham  and  Guest,  who  stand  before  and  to  the  right 
of  the  Altar  in  the  picture.  Dr.  Parker  is  represented  kneeling  ;  those 
standing  behind  the  chair  being  Bishop  Coverdale  on  the  extreme 
left,  clad  in  a  black  woollen  gown,  Bishop  Scory  in  surplice  and  hood, 
and  Bishop  Hodgkins  in  surplice  and  chimere.  All  the  bishops  laid 
hands  upon  the  new  archbishop,  and  repeated  the  essential  words  in 
the  act  of  consecration ;  and  as  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  the  validity 
of  Parker's  consecration,  so  there  can  be  none  as  to  the  succession  of 
episcopal  Orders  in  our  Church ;  for  Archbishop  Parker  and  his  con- 
secrators  proceeded  to  fill  up  the  other  vacancies  as  soon  as  suitable 
men  were  found  for  the  positions.  There  was  a  dearth  of  clergy  at 
that  time,  owing  to  there  having  been  so  few  bishops  and  to  the 
practical  suspension  bf  episcopal  functions  for  over  a  year  ;  but  the 
newly  consecrated  bishops  endeavoured  to  make  up  for  lost  time,  by 
ordaining  clergy  and  confirming  the  churches  everywhere,  so  that 
before  very  long  the  Church  of  England  found  itself  again  in 
working  order.  A  few  people  have  questioned  the  validity  of 
Archbishop  Parker's  consecration  because  the  bishops  who  officiated 
were  not  in  possession  of  sees.  But  the  expulsion  of  those  men  from 
their  benefices  by  Queen  Mary's  commission  could  not  take  away 
their  spiritual  functions,  any  more  than  the  deprivation  of  Bishop 
Ken  and  others  at  the  Revolution  did.  Though  their  acts  may 
be  considered  irregular,  they  were  certainly  not  invalid.  Our 
colonial  bishops  e.g.  often  resign  their  sees  and  return  to  England. 
They  are  frequently  employed  in  assisting  the  home  bishops  in 
confirmations,  ordinations,  and  consecrations.  So  it  has  always 
been  and  is  still  with  every  episcopal  Church.  All  that  is  needful  for 
,us  to  know  is  that  those  who  did  episcopal  acts  were  themselves 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  89 

properly  appointed  and  consecrated.  It  is  not  always  possible,  afte* 
the  lapse  of  centuries,  to  trace  the  parchments  of  every  bishop's  con- 
secration ;  and  because  Bishop  Barlow's  own  consecration  is  not 
recorded  in  the  Lambeth  register  his  official  acts  have  been  declared 
invalid  by  a  few  modern  papalists.  But  nothing  can  be  proved  or 
disproved  by  that  omission,  because  the  records  of  many  other  bishops, 
imch  as  Gardiner,  whose  orders  have  never  been  doubted,  are  missing 
in  like  manner.  There  are,  however,  abundant  evidences  elsewhere 
that  Barlow  was  properly  admitted  to  the  episcopate,  and  that  he  was 
•icknowledged  by  his  colleagues  on  the  episcopal  bench  during  the  last 
ten  years  of  Henry's  reign  as  a  properly  consecrated  bishop.  The  best 
proof  of  Parker's  consecration  after  all,  is  that  none  of  the  Marian 
bishops,  who  would  have  delighted  to  throw  discredit  on  the  chief 
opponent  of  their  systems  if  possible,  ever  showed  any  public  dissent 
or  protest  respecting  the  validity  of  the  transaction.1  Fifty  years 
elapsed  after  the  event  took  place  before  anyone  suggested  a  doubt 
about  Parker's  consecration ;  and  eighty  years  passed  by  before 
Barlow's  was  questioned.  The  next  business  was  to  fill  up  the  other 
vacant  bishoprics.  On  the  20th  of  December,  Bishops  Barlow  and 
Scory  were  confirmed  in  their  appointments  to  the  sees  of  Chichester 
and  Hereford,  vacant  by  death.  The  next  day  four  new  bishops 
were  consecrated  for  London,  Ely,  Worcester  and  Bangor  ;  a  month 
later  four  others  for  St.  David's,  Lincoln,  Salisbury  and  St.  Asaph ; 
and  on  March  24th,  1560,  three  more  for  Rochester,  Bath  and  Wells, 
and  Lichfield  and  Coventry.  The  other  sees  were  kept  vacant  for  a 
time,  owing  to  the  dearth  of  suitable  men,  but  by  1562  every  vacancy 
was  supplied  with  a  bishop  ;  and  since  that  time  there  has  not  been 
any  real  danger  of  losing  the  succession.  Archbishop  Parker  proved 
himself  an  able  administrator  such  as  the  Church  needed  in  those 
days  ;  for  he  kept  a  firm  hand  over  a  disorganised  clergy,  compelling 
them  to  dress  becomingly  and  conduct  the  services  with  reverence  and 
regularity.  In  this  he  was  helped  by  the  re-issue  of  the  Injunction* 
nf  Edward's  reign,  revised  and  improved  from  experience  of  past 
years.  He  had  sometimes  to  contend  with  difficulties  arising  out  of 
the  queen's  character,  and  still  oftener  with  the  bishops  who  were 
anxious  for  drastic  reforms  ;  but  before  he  died  in  1575  his  wise  policy 
towards  Romanists,  his  restriction  of  Puritan  innovations,  his  resolu- 
tion to  purify  ritual,  and  his  zealous  personal  labours,  had  effected 
a  lasting  and" solid  settlement  of  the  Reformed  English  Church. 

1  The  following  words  of  the  learned  German  theologian,  Dr.  Ton  Bellinger,  from 
his  speech  at  the  Reunion  Conference  at  Bonn,  in  1875,  ought  to  be  conclusive  : 
"  The  fact  that  Parker  was  consecrated  by  four  rightly  consecrated  Bishops,  rite  a 
leyitime,  with  imposition  of  hands  and  the  necessary  words,  is  go  well  attested  that, 
if  one  chooses  to  doubt  thii  fact,  one  could,  with  the  same  right,  doubt  one  hundred 
thousand  facts.  .  .  .  The  fact  is  as  well  established  as  a  fact  can  be  required  to  be 
Bossuet  has  acknowledged  the  validity  of  Parker's  consecration,  ami  co  critical 
aistoriau  can  dispute  it.  The  Orders  oi  the  Romish  Church  could  be  disputed  with 
more  appearance  of  reason." 


90  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES   ON 

6.  The  Articles  of  Religion.— After  the  Lutheran  reformers 
came  to  England  in  1538  (see  page  36)  an  attempt  was  made  to 
explain  the  reforming  opinions  by  a  document  known  as  the  Thirteen 
Artiolet}  founded  upon  the  Confession  of  Augsburg.  There  had  long 
been  a  general  tendency  among  religious  communities  to  set  out  their 
ideas  in  a  formal  explanatory  code ;  and  the  Council  of  Trent,  which 
had  been  holding  session  after  session  since  1545,  drew  up  a  similar 
statement  of  .Romanist  belief.  The  "  Thirteen  Articles "  were  never 
authorised,  but  in  1551  Archbishop  Cranmer  was  directed  "  to  frame 
a  Book  of  Articles  of  Religion  for  the  preserving  and  maintaining 
peace  and  unity  of  doctrine."  When  finished  they  were  forty-two 
in  number.  Having  been  submitted  to  and  accepted  by  Convocation 
they  received  royal  authority  (May  1553)  and  were  very  generally 
subscribed  by  the  clergy  ;  but  the  accession  of  Mary  within  two 
months  of  their  publication  caused  them  to  be  suppressed.  As  soon 
as  the  Elizabethan  episcopal  difficulties  were  set  at  rest,  the  attention 
of  Convocation  was  directed  to  the  revival  of  the  Articles  ;  but  the 
dangerous  tenets  of  those  who  returned  from  exile  '  with  Germanical 
natures '  as  Archbishop  Parker  was  wont  to  describe  them,  '  who 
under  cover  of  Reformation  sought  the  ruin  and  subversion  both  of 
learning  and  of  religion,'  rendered  a  very  careful  revision  necessary. 
This  was  done,  and  in  1563  they  appeared  as  Thirty -eight, 
Articlet.  They  were  again  revised  in  1571,  when  they  assumed 
(heir  present  order  and  number.  On  the  application  of  Con- 
focation  these  Thirty-nine  Articles  were  sanctioned  by  Parliament 
and  ratified  by  Queen  Elizabeth.  They  have  ever  since  been  the  test 
of  orthodox  Churchmanship ;  and  until  recently  subscription  to 
them  was  needed  from  all  who  held  official  positions  under  Govern- 
ment. Kindred  formularies — like  the  Confessions  of  Augsburg  and 
Wittenberg,  and  the  Creed  issued  by  the  Council  of  Trent — are 
considered  by  Lutherans  and  Romanists  as  essential  articles  of  faith; 
belief  in  which  is  considered  necessary  for  every  Christian's  salvation. 
But  the  Thirty-nine  Articles  now  printed  at  the  end  of  our  Prayer-book 
are  in  no  sense  to  be  considered  as  an  authoritative  creed  for  all 
Churchmen.  They  are  rather  limitations,  explanations,  and  safeguards 
— against  Romanism  on  the  one  hand  and  extreme  Puritanism  on  the 
other — subscription  to  which  gives  assurance  of  the  subscriber's 
loyalty.  The  Three  Creeds  mentioned  in  our  present  eighth  article, 
which  derive  their  doctrinal  authority  wholly  from  God's  Word,  are 
the  only  formulae  besides  the  Scriptures  that  are  binding  upon  all 
English  Churchmen.  The  Thirty-nine  Articles  were  originally  printed 
in  English  and  I^atin,  in  order  that  their  meaning  might  be  interpreted 
more  easily.  As  they  took  the  shape  of  a  formal  public  document 
it  is  clear  that  they  should  be  accepted  in  their  literal  and  gram- 
matical sense  alone  ;  which  can  be  ascertained  by  references  to 
contemporary  literature  and  other  formularies  of  the  time.  As  they 
do  not  pretend  to  be  complete  or  exhaustive,  there  is  no  reason  why 


ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY.  91 

all  Churchmen  should  not  sign  them  in  good  faith ;  and  as  they  wen 
intended  to  be  pacificatory  we  ought  not  to  strain  their  meaning, 
[n  1563  many  Puritan  clergy  resigned  their  benefices,  rather  than  . 
subscribe  the  Articles  of  Religion,  but  we  shall  hear  of  thenj 
presently.  Article  XXXV.  mentions  two  books  of  H&milie*.  Th« 
first  book  has  already  been  referred  to.  The  second  book  appeared 
in  1563  and  was  compiled  by  Bishop  Jewell ;  the  same  who  pub- 
lished the  famous  Apology  far  the  Church  of  England  in  1561, 
which  for  several  successive  reigns  was  placed  by  royal  command  in 
every  church  of  the  land  for  the  instruction  of  the  people.  The 
•  Apology  '  and  '  Homilies '  were  both  '  very  necessary  for  those 
times,'  but  both  have  long  been  obsolete.  Two  revisions  of  the 
English  Bible  were  made  about  this  time.  One  is  known  as  the 
Genera  Biblr.  It  was  translated  abroad  by  William  Whittingham, 
and  dedicated  to  Queen  Elizabeth.  It  had  a  large  circulation,  but 
there  were  so  many  errors  in  it  that  the  primate  caused  a  new  trans- 
lation to  be  made.  This  was  published  with  authority  in  1568  and 
known  as  Parker1*  Bible.  Ultimately  it  was  ordered  that  no  other 
version  should  be  read  in  churches. 

6.  The  Council  of  Trent.1— When  Henry  VIII.  had  given  the 
death  blow  to  papal  power  in  England,  and  had  been  excom- 
municated by  Paul  III.,  he  appealed  to  a  General  Council  against  the 
ban.  The  Pope  then  summoned  a  Council  at  Mantua,  and  cited 
Henry  to  appear  before  it ;  but  the  latter  declined  on  the  ground 
that  it  was  not  properly  convoked.1  The  condition  of  the  Romish 
Church  was  then  so  bad  in  head  and  members  that  all  pious  people 
demanded  a  general  reform,  and  men  like  Luther,  before  they  drifted 
too  far  from  Catholicism,  had  professed  willingness  to  abide  by  the 
decisions  of  a  completely  representative  Council.  The  Church  of 
Rome  was  bound  to  meet  this  general  demand  ;  but  while  outwardly 
consenting,  care  was  taken  so  to  arrange  representation  and  formu- 
late business  that  whatever  happened  her  own  errors  should  not  be 
condemned.  Various  places  were  suggested  for  the  Council  to  meet 
at,  but  the  princes  refused  their  assent.  At  last  the  city  of  Trent 
in  the  Austrian  Tyrol  was  decided  on,  and  invitations  were  sent  out. 
The  Church  of  England  did  not  recognise  the  Council,  and  therefore 
did  not  send  representatives  ;  but  the  outlawed  English  ecclesiastic, 
Cardinal  Pole  was  nominated  by  the  pope  to  represent  this 
country,  so  as  to  preserve  the  semblance  of  universality.  A  formal 
preliminary  session  took  place  on  December  13th,  1545,  but  there 
were  very  few  deputies  present.  There  were  twenty-five  meetings 
altogether,  spread  over  a  period  of  eighteen  years,  so  that  the 
members  present  were  never  the  same  ;  those  who  did  attend  being 

1  See  Dr.  Littledile's  Short  History  of  Council  oi  Treat,  8JP.CH.  1* 
S  See  Articles  of  Beligion  XII, 


H  ILLUSTRATED   NOTMS   ON 

mostly  Italians.  Teu  years  intervened  between  the  16th  and  17th 
se&sioiis,  1552-1562  ;  so  that  there  were  no  meetings  during  the  reign 
of  Queen  Mary.  Pius  IV.  wanted  Elizabeth  to  send  representatives 
to  the  seventeenth  session  in  1562,  but  she  refused  to  let  the  papal 
nuncio  communicate  with  the  prelates ;  because  the  Council  was 
1  not  free,  pious,  or  Christian,'  and  because  the  terms  of  invitation 
were  humiliating.  Other  European  princes  declined  for  similar 
reasons.  It  was  therefore  in  no  sense  a  '  General '  Council,  and  conse- 
quently its  decrees  have  no  binding  force  on  Christians  who  repudiate 
the  papal  claims  to  world-wide  domination.  The  last  meeting  took 
place  Dec.  3,  1563,  and  the  doctrinal  decisions  arrived  at  were  em- 
bodied in  the  famous  Creed  of  Pope  Pius  IV.,  which  contains  many 
articles  of  faith  not  found  in  any  former  profession  of  Christian 


THE   CITY  OP  TRENT   (AUSTRIAN  TYROL). 

belief.  Koruauists  have  since  been  bound  to  accept  Papal  '  Traditions' 
as  of  equal  authority  with  Holy  Scripture,  and  to  receive  as  de  Jide 
the  following  unauthorised  dogmas :  the  Trent  decrees  on  Justification 
and  Original  Sin  ;  a  propitiatory  sacrifice  for  lining  and  dead  in  the 
Eucharist ;  Transubstantiation  and  Communion  in  one  kind  ; 
Purgatory  ;  Invocation  of  Saints  and  veneration  of  their  images  or 
relics ;  Indulgences ;  the  Church  of  Rome  as  the  mother  and 
mistress  of  all  Churches,  and  obedience  to  the  pope  as  vicar  of 
Christ ;  and  all  other  decrees  of  the  '  holy  Council  of  Trent.'  Many 
of  the  above  doctrines  had  been  floating  about  for  generations  as 
pious  opinions,  not  positively  binding,  but  the  above-mentioned 
Creed  '  hardened  into  positive  law  much  that  was  previously  open 
and  indeterminate,  thereby  laying  a  heavy  burden  on  the  modern 
Roman  Catholic's  conscience  from  which  his  forefathers  were  free ' 


XNGL2SX    CHURCH   HISTORY.  99 

(Littledalt).  They  have  to  profess  it  as  "  the  true  Catholic  faith, 
without  which  no  one  can  be  saved."  The  articles  of  the  Church  of 
Sr£land  were  long  anterior  to  this  presumptuous  document. 

7.  Tie  First  English  Roman  Catholics.— We  have  referred 
(page  86)  to  the  dissentients  who  declined  to  accept  the  English 
Prayer-book  because  of  their  papal  predilections.  Some  of  these 
were  suspected  of  conspiring  to  set  the  Queen  of  Scotland  and  France 
on  the  English  throne  and  restore  the  Romish  hierarchy,  to  prevent 
which  Elizabeth  sent  open  and  secret  aid  to  the  Scottish  reformers, 
who  were  endeavouring  to  keep  their  queen  in  France,  Severe 
statutes  against  the  Romanists  were  passed  in  1562,  but  there  was 
very  little  need  at  first  to  enforce  them.  A  strong  government 
that  is  responsive  to  the  instinct  of  self-preservation  can  generally 
command  obedience  through  fear,  if  not  by  love,  and  although  the 
Romanisers  did  not  care  for  the  Act  of  Uniformity,  they  continued  to 
worship  in  the  churches  as  formerly.  Foreign  princes  interested 
themselves  on  their  behalf,  and  asked  that  the  deprived  bishops 
might  have  churches  handed  over  to  them  in  which  they  could  use 
the  Latin  service  books.  Queen  Elizabeth  replied,  that  "  to  grant 
them  separate  churches,  and  permit  them  to  keep  up  a  distinct  com- 
munion, were  things  which  neither  the  public  interest  nor  her  own 
honour  would  allow.  .  .  For  there  was  no  new  faith  propagated 
in  England  ;  no  religion  set  up  but  that  which  was  commanded  by 
our  Saviour,  preached  by  the  Primitive  Church,  and  unanimously 
approved  by  the  ancient  Fathers."  A  very  significant  «tat«ment  was 
afterwards  made  from  the  judicial  bench  by  Lord  Chief  Justice  Coke 
that  Pope  Pius  IV.  had  sent  a  private  nuncio  to  England  in  1560, 
with  an  offer  to  agree  to  all  the  changes  the  English  Church  had 
made  in  the  Liturgy,  the  translation  of  the  Scriptures,  and  the 
appointment  of  bishops,  if  only  hit  supremacy  might  be  recognized. 
The  nuncio  was  forbidden  to  land,  but  the  circumstance  proves  that 
the  chief  struggle  between  England  and  Rome  was  for  the  right  of  a 
National  Church  to  be  free  from  alien  jurisdiction ;  and  that  no  new 
faith  was  imposed  on  the  nation.  Our  Church's  further  claim  that 
each  National  Church  has  the  right  of  adapting  its  services  to  the 
varying  needs  of  race,  and  clime,  and  speech  (so  that  nothing  be 
done  contrary  to  the  Word  of  God  and  the  customs  of  the  primitive 
Church)  had  been  allowed  over  and  over  again.  In  1570,  after  the 
futile  rebellion  in  the  North  of  England  (see  page  98),  when  Pope 
Pius  V.  saw  that  all  hope  of  recovering  England  by  diplomacy  had 
failed,  he  published  a  Bull  of  excommunication  (Regnant  in  txcelfit) 
against  Elizabeth  ;  in  which  she  was  most  insultingly  described,  her 
subjects  absolved  from  their  allegiance,  the  throne  declared  vacant, 
and  all  Christians  loyal  to  the  pope  commanded  to  separate  them- 
selves from  the  mode  of  worship  she  upheld  in  her  realm  !  A  very 
few  persons  obeyed  this  mandate,  and  became  ihejirtt  Engliih  Boma* 


94  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    ON 

Catholict,  but  the  vast  majority  of  English  Churchfolk  who  had 
cherished  a  lingering  love  for  the  papacy  were  BO  horrified  at  this 
exhibition  of  ultramontane  insolence  against  a  monarch  who  was 
daily  rising  in  popular  esteem,  that  they  at  once  became  firmly  loyal 
to  the  national  religion.  The  English  Church  is  not  a  schism  from 
the  Church  of  Rome,  but  the  English  Roman  Catholics  seceded  from 
the  old  Church  of  England.  The  intrepid  man  who  nailed  a  copy  of 
the  above  bull  on  the  bishop  of  London's  door  was  executed  as  a 
traitor  forthwith,  and  the  laws  against  Romanists  were  made 
increasingly  severe.  Public  opinion  was  still  further  outraged  when 
the  news  arrived  of  the  massacre  of  over  20,000  Huguenots  in 
France,  at  the  instigation  of  Catharine  de  Medici,  on  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Eve  1672.  This  fearful  deed  of  blood  was  much  belauded  by 
the  pope,  who  ordered  medals  to  be  struck  in  commemoration  ; 
but  it  increased  the  bitterness  with  which  Englishmen  regarded 
everything  papal,  and  gave  the  impending  political  struggles 
of  our  country  against  France  and  Spain  the  character  of 
religious  crusades.  Cardinal  Allen's  '  counter  reformation  '  began 
about  the  same  time.  He  set  up  English  colleges  at  Douay  and 
Rome  where  youag  men  were  trained  with  full  purpose  of  being  sent 
to '  convert  England  to  papal  obedience.'  The  first  mission  was  led  by 
the  Jesuit  fathers  Parsons  and  Campion.  They  knew  the  laws  were 
very  severe  against  them,  but  they  accepted  the  risk  and  bravely  bore 
the  penalty  when  captured.  They  advocated  conspiracy  and  treason 
in  order  to  compass  their  ends,  and  were  treated  with  very  little 
mercy.  Campion  was  soon  caught,  and  put  to  cruel  torture  to  make 
him  inform  against  his  fellow-conspirators,  but  he  maintained  a 
resolute  silence  and  was  put  to  death.  The  people  who  suffered 
death  in  Mary's  reign  for  professing  a  faith  opposed  to  that  ordered 
by  the  government  were  avowedly  burnt  because  their  faith  was  held 
to  be  heretical ;  bu  t  Romanists  who  were  executed  in  the  time  of  Queen 
Elizabeth  thoueh  they  also  suffered  for  their  religious  beliefs,  were 
ostensibly  punished  as  political  offenders  and  traitors  to  the  throne. 

8.  The  Fiist  Puritan1  Nonconformists. —  The  English 
Church  had  other  adversaries,  more  numerous  and  successful  than 
Jhe  Romanists,  in  the  extreme  Puritans,  who  advocated  the  religious 
systems  of  Calvin,  Luther,  &c.  They  gave  much  trouble  to  Arch- 
bishop Parker,  but  far  more  to  his  successors.  They  had  many 
mends  in  high  places,  and  were  well  represented  in  Parliament, 
from  which  Romanists  were  excluded  because  they  refused  to  take 
the  oath  of  the  queen's  supremacy ;  and  they  were  continually 
reinforced  by  foreign  refugees.  Thus  in  1567  the  Duke  of  Alva's 
persecution  in  the  Netherlands  drove  many  Dutchmen  to  England, 
Vho  were  allowed  to  establish  themselves  in  eight  English  towus  and 

>  80  called  because  they  professed  to  desire  a  simpler  (purer)  form  of  worship. 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY. 


95 


worship  according  to  their  convictions.    The  well-known  church  of 
the  Austin  Friars,  near  the  Bank  of  England,  was  appropriated  to  the 
use  of  those  who  settled  in  London,  and  the  Dutch  Reformed  Church 
have  held  it  ever  since.    So  too.  after  the  massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew, 
many  Huguenot  families  took  refuge  in  England  ;   besides  which,  an 
of  fa-  greater  importance,  correspondence  was  continued  be tween  tti 
English  clergy  who  had  returned  from  exile  and  those  with  whon 
they  had  associated  when  abroad.     When  the  English  Prayer-book 
was  enforced  by  the  Act  of  Uniformity,  and  the  clergy  compelled  to 
subscribe  the  XXXIX  Articles  (1563).  many  Puritans  resigned  t 
cures,  but  many  more  remained  to  stir  up  strife  within  the  C        en, 
and    several  bishops  gave  them  every  latitude^    Jus 
Hooper    had  refused 
to  be  consecrated  in 
the    episcopal    habit, 
and     Bishop     Cover- 
dale  would  only  at- 
tend the  consecration 
of  Parker  in  a  gown 
of    sombre   black,  so 
many  clergy  objected 
to      the      inoffensive 


AUSTIN   FRIARS'   CHtTRCH. 


surplice,   and    to    all 
adornment      of     the 
churches.   There  were 
others  who    objected 
to  the    ancient    sys- 
tem   of    government 
and  discipline  in  the 
Church,       preferring 
the    method    author- 
ised by  John  Calvin  ; 
others"    again      who 
wished     to    be    per- 
fectly ' independent ' 
with  services   and   ministers  to  suit   each  congregation,  so  lo 
neither  were  suspected  of  Romanism  or  Epi-copacy     The  latter  wer 
led  by  Robert  Br.nun,  domestic  chaplain  to  the  Duke  of  Norfolk,  and 
master  of  a  Free  School  in  London.  He  disobeyed  the  injunctions  and 
was  summoned  before  the  High  Commission  Court,  but  at  the  interces- 
sion of  his  patron  was  allowed  to  go  to  Norwich  and  minister  to  a  la 
population  of  Calvinists  who  had  come  from  Holland.     He  attracted 
other  discontented  persons    and  formed  the  first  Ite*ent™<j  com- 
munity (1568).   His  language  became  so  violent  and  seditious  that  h 
was  obliged  to  fly  to  the  Continent  for  safety.     Ultimately  (loSl)  he 
returned  and  confessed  his  errors,  and  was  collated  to  the  rect 
Th  orpt-Achurch  in  Northamptonshire.  But  his  novel  system  continue 


*6  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

to  spread,  and  is  now  known  as  Congregationalism,  The  opponents  of 
Episcopacy  grew  more  numerous  as  the  papacy  grew  more  insolent. 
The  Puritans  refused  to  dissociate  the  time-honoured  and  Apostolic 
method  of  Church  government  from  the  papal  interpretation  of  it. 
All  '  prelacy  '  was  hateful  to  them,  because  they  wished  to  be 
untrammelled  and  undisciplined.  At  the  close  of  the  year  1570 
Thomas  Cartwright,  a  returned  exile,  then  Lady  Margaret  professor 
of  divinity  at  Cambridge,  openly  lectured  against  Episcopacy,  the 
Prayer-book  and  'habits  '  [vestments].  He  was  expelled  the 
University  and  migrated  to  Antwerp.  In  1671,  after  passing  the 
statutes  (13  Eliz.,  c.  1  and  2)  against  Romanists  and  papal  bulls, 
the  Puritans  in  Parliament  agitated  for  a  more  thorough  reformation, 
and  the  next  year  a  Mr.  Wentworth  actually  introduced  two  bills 
proposing  alterations  in  the  national  religion  on  the  Genevan 
model,  which  the  house  proceeded  to  discuss  ;  but  Elizabeth  sent  a 
very  peremptory  message  down  to  say  that  no  bills  on  Church 
matters  should  be  dealt  with  unless  previously  approved  by  Convoca- 
tion.1 Then  Cartwright  issued  pamphlets  from  Antwerp,  called 
'  Admonitions  to  Parliament,'  in  which  the  Church  was  violently 
attacked.  These  were  widely  circulated,  and  resulted  in  the  for- 
mation of  the  first  Presbyterian  Congregation  in  England  (1572). 
The  queen  rebuked  the  bishops  for  their  want  of  discipline,  and 
when  Bishop  Jewell  proved  that  the  most  violent  puritanical 
preachers,  Heath,  Button,  Coleman,  and  Hallingham  were  Jesuits  in 
disguise,  whose  object  was  to  destroy  the  Catholic  character  of 
the  old  National  Church,  the  revolutionary  tide  began  to  ebb. 
Archbishop  Parker  died  in  1675,  and  Bishop  Grindall  was  translated 
from  York  to  succeed  him.  He  had  been  an  exile  in  Queen 
Mary's  reign,  and  was  somewhat  in  sympathy  with  the  Puritans. 
He  thought  the  disorders  were  owing  to  the  scarcity  of  good 
preachers ;  so  he  encouraged  the  religious  exercises  called  '  Prophesy- 
in<js,'3  although  he  knew  they  had  been  forbidden  by  the  queen  and 
by  his  predecessor  as  dangerous  to  discipline,  because  they  were 
often  used  for  the  publication  of  heterodox  ideas.  The  queen 
exercised  her  supremacy  by  ordering  their  suppression.  The  new 
primate  refused  to  comply  and  was  forthwith  suspended  by  the 
Star  Chamber  Court;  which  took  cognizance  of  offences  against 

1  "Upon  serious  consideration,"  says  a  well-known  Church  historian  of  an 
earlier  age  than  ours,  "  it  will  appear  that  there  wai  nothing  done  in  the  reforma- 
tion of  religion  save  what  was  asked  for  by  the  clergy  in  tkeir  Convocation,  or 
grounded  on  gome  act  of  theirs  precedent  to  it,  with  the  advice,  counsel  and  con- 
sent of  the  bishops  and  most  eminent  Churchmen,  confirmed  upon  the  past  fact,  an  d 
tot  otherwise  by  the  civil  unction,  according  to  the  usage  of  the  best  and 
happiest  times  of  Christianity"  (Fuller),  and  this  ii  confirmed  by  a  more  recent 
writer  who  says  that  all  through  the  reforming  epoch  "Acts  of  Parliament  did  not 
precede,  but  followed  in  point  of  time  the  decisions  of  the  spirituality,  and  were 
merely  auxiliary  to  the  Acts  of  Convocation  "  (.Way  land  Joyce]. 

1  Keligious  debate*,  in  which  clergy  and  laity  showed  off  their  oratorical  gifts. 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY. 


tr 


the  royal  prerogative,  Hia  see  remained  sequestrated  till  his  death 
in  1583,  but  he  was  allowed  to  perform  the  essentially  archiepiscopal 
functions.  His  successor  was  John  Whitgift,  who  had  been  Cart- 
wright's  great  opponent.  He  proved  a  strict  disciplinarian.  Many 
people  consider  that  he  was  much  too  strict.  It  was  then  (1583) 
that  the  Court  of  High  Commission  was  established  on  a  permanent 
foundation  to  adjudicate  on  all  offences  against  the  Acts  of  Supremacy 
and  Uniformity.  It  consisted  of  forty-four  commissioners,  twelve 
of  whom  were  bishops,  twelve  lay  privy  councillors,  and  the 
remainder  clergy  and  laymen  in  equal  proportions.  The  refractory 


A 


Wm 


Mt-^4 


THS  TEMPLE   CHUBCH,   LOJfDOS,   B.C. 

Puritans  were  quickly  brought  to  order  by  its  means,  although  not 
without  many  libellous  attacks  upon  the  bishops  on  their  part ;  and 
chiefly  in  the  notorious  Martin  Mar-prelate  Tractt,  which  abused 
and  slandered  everything  connected  with  the  Church's  doctrine  and 
discipline  in  the  most  vicious  and  abominable  language.  The 
printing-press  was  thus  made  a  terrible  engine  of  sedition  and 
blasphemy.  But  good  came  oat  of  evil— for  men  were  moved  to 
use  tongue  and  pen  in  defence  of  the  Church  with  far  more  power 
than  thtj  High  Commissioa  Court  could  wield.  The  Mastership  of 


ILLUSTRATED   VOTES   ON 


SSasrtfi&S^wSS'sffiS 

ss?2£s!55  SZ^SM^  j 

SSKVi 

sijTS?L 

abstruse  definitions  which  m 

asasssjB 

sSssasK 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY. 


99 


Scotland,  because  te  was  a 
hostility  between  England 
and  Spain  for  some  time, 
each  helping  the  other's  foes, 
ever  since  Elizabeth  refused 
Philip's  offer  of  marriage — 
but  now  there  was  to  be 
open  war.  Philip  was  the 
accepted  champion  of  the 
Romanists  throughout  Eu- 
rope, and  Elizabeth  was 
looked  upon  no  less  as  the 
hope  of  all  Reformers.  Pope 
Sixtus  V.  gave  his  sanction 
to  Philip's  enterprise,  and 
ffreat  preparations  were  made 
for  the  invasion  of  England 
and  the  restoration  of  papal 
supremacy.  The  threatened 
danger  made  men  forget 
their  religious  differences, 
and  Romanist  Englishmen 
freely  joined  with  Puritan 
Englishmen,  side  by  side 
with  the  English  Church- 
men, in  offering  aid  to  the 
nation  in  its  day  of  trou- 
ble by  placing  their  ships, 
and  money,  and  persons  at 
its  disposal. 


Protestant.'    There  had  been  secret 


OF   SCOTS. 


10.  The  Spanish  Armada.— There  is  no  more  inspiriting 
chapter  in  our  national  annals  than  the  story  of  the  Spanish  over- 
throw. The  love  of  the  sea  and  its  perils  had  never  been  absent 
from  the  descendants  of  the  old  Sea-kings  who  made  the  British 
Isles  their  home ;  and  the  names  of  Drake,  Frobisher,  Hawkins, 
Raleigh,  with  a  host  besides,  will  never  be  lost  sight  of  in  the  history 
of  maritime  adventures ;  but  they  will  be  remembered  best  for  the 
part  they  played  in  helping  to  defeat  the  Spaniards.  In  158S  The 
English  Navy  was  small  and  badly  equipped,  and  the  threatened 
invasion  by  Philip  was  delayed  so  long  that  the  volunteer  vessels 
were  ictually  paid  off  and  ordered  home,  in  the  belief  that  he  would 
not  prosecute  the  crusade.  But  on  the  19th  of  July  a  Scotch 
privateer  ran  into  Plymouth  Bay  to  tell  the  English  Admiral,  Lord 
Howard,  that  the  Spanish  fleet  had  been  seen  off  the  coast  of  Cornwall. 
Immeliately  the  country  and  sea-board  were  alive  with  defenders. 
The  Eiglish  officera  were  playing  bowls  when  this  news  arrived,  but 


100 


ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 


were  not  at  all  disconcerted.  Drake's  reply  to  the  messenger  "  There 
will  be  time  to  finish  our  game  and  beat  the  Spaniards  too  "  is  typical 
of  the  cool  courage  of  our  sailor  warriors  then.  There  was  no  panic, 
but  all  were  filled  with  a  loyal  enthusiasm  for  the  maintenance  of 
home  and  faith  and  freedom.  Warning  beacons  blazed  on  every 
hill  as  the  appointed  signals  for  rallying  to  the  struggle. 

"  Par  on  the  deep  the  Spaniards  saw,  along  each  southern  shire 
Gape  beyond  cape  iu  endless  range  those  twinkling  points  of  fire. 

And  by  the  time  the  foe  appeared  in  sight  Lord  Howard  had  his 
little  fleet  in  trim.  '  Disposed  in  the  form  of  a  crescent,  the  horns  of 


ENGLISH   AND  SPANISH   SHIPS,  temp.  ABMADA. 
which   were  seven   miles   asunder,   those   gilded,  towered,  floating 


of  the  shfps  carried  a  supply  of  Romish  priests,  who  were  to  be  placec 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY.  101 

In  charge  of  English  parishes,»and  implement*  of  the  Spanish  In- 
quisition for  the  torture  of  '  heretics.'  At  midnight  on  July  28th, 
the  English  silently  towed  eight  small  vessels  covered  with  tar  and 
filled  with  inflammable  materials  towards  the  Armada,  and  having 
ignited  them  let  them  drift  into  the  midst  of  the  hundred  and  fifty 
gorgeous  galleons.  In  terror  the  Spaniards  cut  their  cables  and  put  to 
sea  in  the  greatest  disorder.  At  daybreak  the  separated  ships  of  the 
now  disunited  host  were  attacked  by  the  active  and  well  managed 
English  vessels  and  forced  to  fly.  Had  the  English  ships  been 
better  supplied  with  provisions  and  ammunition  the  historian  might 
have  had  a  different  tale  to  tell.  The  foe  was  chased  and  worried  as 
long  as  our  stores  lasted,  and  then  the  English  boats  were  compelled 
to  put  in  port  for  more.  They  had  hardly  done  so  when  a  storm 
arose  which  drove  the  Spaniards  northwards.  In  the  days  before 
steamships  were  invented  every  sea  voyage  depended  on  the  elements, 
and  they  now  fought  against  Spain.  The  scattered  fleet  was  driven 
among  the  Orkneys  and  Hebrides,  while  many  vessels  were  dashed 
to  pieces  on  the  rocky  coasts  of  Argyllshire,  Antrim.  Mayo, 
and  Kerry;  only  54  dismantled  hulks  returning  to  Spain.  Of 
cou  rse  there  were  great  rejoicings  in  England  for  this  memorable 
deliverance,  but  it  was  felt  (and  who  can  dcnbt  it)  that  God's  hand 
was  working  in  and  through  all  for  the  salvation  of  our  Church  and 
Realm,  A  commemorative  medal  was  struck,  bearing  on  its  face  the 
imagery  of  a  storm-tossed  fleet,  and  on  the  reverse  side"AFFLAVir 
DEUS,  KT  DISSIPANTUB  ! "  It  was  the  crowning  mercy  which 
finally  freed  our  land  from  the  odious  foreign  prelate ;  for  since  that 
time  the  popes  have  made  no  attempt  to  subvert  the  national  religion 
by  violence.  It  was  but  natural  teat  Parliament  should  increase 
the  severity  of  ita  statutes  against  Romanists,  lest  there  should  be 
any  lingering  hope  of  better  success  at  a  future  time;  so  we  read  of 
penal  laws  being  passed  in  1533,  banishing  some  and  restricting  the 
movements  of  others,  besides  the  deaths  of  many  on  charges 
of  treason.  Some  Puritans  also  were  executed  for  seditious  writings, 
aud  all  person?  were  compelled  to  attend  the  parish  church  once  a 
month.  Ultimately  the  land  became  peaceful  and  prosperous.  The 
end  of  the  16th  century  was  marked  by  a  reaction  against  Puritanism. 
"  As  one  by  one  the  generation  which  had  sustained  the  queen  at  her 
accession  dropped  into  the  grave,  a  generation  arose  which,  excep- 
ting in  books  of  controversy,  knew  nothing  of  any  religion 
which  differed  from  that  of  the  Church  of  England.  The  cere- 
monies and  vestments  which  in  the  time  of  their  fathers  had 
been  exposed  to  such  bitter  attacks  were  to  them  hallowed,  as 
having  been  entwined  with  their  earliest  associations.  It  required  a 
strong  effort  of  the  imagination  to  connect  them  with  the  forms  of  a 
departed  system  which  they  had  never  witnessed  with  their  eyes ; 
but  they  remembered  that  those  ceremonies  had  been  used,  and  those 
TeatmeaU  had  been  wora  by  the  clergy,  who  had  led  their  prayer* 


10 3  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

during  those  anxious  days,  when  the  Armada,  yet  unconquered,  was 
hovering  round  the  coast,  and  who  had  in  their  name  and  m  the 
name  of  3  true  Englishmen,  offered  the  thanksgiving  which  had 
ascended  to  heaven  after  the  great  victory  had  been  won.  ?  A 

•fore  the  century  closed  Hooker  could  say  with  perfect  sincerity— 
-  There  is  not  any^an  of  the  Church  of  England  but  the  same  man 
is  also  a  membe?  of  the  commonwealth;  nor  any  man  a  member 
of  the  commonwealth  which  is  not  also  of  the  Church  of  England. 

11.  National   Glory.— The  Eliza- 
bethan period  was  a  brilliant  one  for 
English  literature— Francis  Bacon  laid 
the  foundation  for  modern  philosophy, 
and  Richard  Hooker  invested  English 
prose  with  an  eloquence  and  dignity  it 
had  never  previously  worn.     Edmund, 
Spenser's  Faerie  Qneene  has  delighted 
all    succeeding   generations,    and    the 
affection  for  the  memory  of  Wzlliv 
Shakespeare,  whose  tomb  within 
chancel   of    Stratford-on-Avon   church 
is  visited  by  travellers  from  the  ends 
of  the  earth,  grows  stronger  and  deeper 
every  day.  English  ships  then  ploughed 
the  seas  in  every  direction.     Men  saile 
around  the  world  in  voyages  measured 
bv  years,  and  brought  home  specimens 
of  its  hidden  treasures.     The  Coast  of 
Guinea  was    discovered    by   Sir   John 
Hawkins,     and     Sir    Walter     Raleigh 


OW  CHTTRC7I. 
1  Gardiner's  Hist,  of  Bug.,  VoL  I.,  i»g*  '- 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  103 

founded  a  colony  in  America  from  which  sprung  the  State  of  Virginia, 
BO  named  by  him  in  honour  of  his  patroness  the  'Virgin  Queen  '  of 
England.  Frobisher  and  Davis  explored  the  Arctic  Ocean,  and  a 
regular  system  of  trading  was  established  with  the  East  Indies. 
The  Charter  of  privileges  which  Elizabeth  granted  to  the  Indian 
traders  in  1600  was  the  commencement  of  the  famed  East  India 
Company  which  for  so  long  ruled  a  large  part  of  what  is  now  our 
Indian  Empire.  A  settled  faith,  a  world-wide  commerce,  young  and 
thriving  plantations  abroad,  and  a  high-class  literature — all  of  which 
contained  in  themselves  the  elements  of  permanence — these  were 
blessings  to  be  thankful  for  and  proud  of  ;  fit  to  be  remembered, 
though  with  a  sense  of  responsibility,  when  we  wish  to  turn  aside 
from  the  unchristian  feuds  which  disgraced  the  Tudor  times.  Of 
the  Church  Architecture  at  this  period  not  much  can  be  said. 
Speaking  generally  it  was  a  development  of  the  '  Perpendicular ' 
style  introduced  by  William  of  Wykeham  at  the  clos«  of  the  14th 
century,  and  made  more  and  more  florid  by  the  introduction  of 
excessive  ornamentation,  until  its  purity  and  grace  was  obscured. 
King's  College  Chapel,  Cambridge  (page  15),  is  an  example  of  it 
when  at  its  beet ;  the  chapel  of  Henry  VII.  at  the  east  end  of  West- 
minster Abbey  being  the  latest  but  least  worthy  specimen.  After 
that  the  style  became  '  debased,'  the  designs  inferior,  and  the  work- 
manship exceedingly  bad  ;  as  is  abundantly  clear  from  the  altera- 
tions which  were  made  in  many  parish  churches. 

12 .  Summary  of  Part  IV.— The  chief  object  .of  the  foregoing 
pages  has  been  to  show  the  continuity  of  Church  organisation  during 
the  period  when  the  Tudors  reigned,  and  to  point  out  that  the  statutes 
by  which  any  changes  were  brought  about  expressly  disclaim  all 
intention  of  breaking  that  continuity.  Excepting  the  celibate 
communities  which  lived  by  rule,  and  which  were  appendages  rather 
than  integral  parts  of  the  Church's  system,  not  a  single  corporation 
was  dissolved.  The  Church's  corporate  life  remained  unbroken,  and 
all  things  essential  to  its  existence  remained  unchanged.  The 
ordinaries  retained  their  jurisdiction,  and  administered  the  same 
law  as  before.  The  bishops  still  sat  in  the  House  of  Lords  and  by  the 
same  title  as  before.  The  Convocations  continued  to  sit  concurrently 
with  every  Parliament,  as  before.  No  historic  fact  is  clearer  than 
that  the  Church  of  England  retained  every  essential  element  of  her 
ancient  organisation,  her  apostolic  doctrines,  and  her  national 
character,  all  through  the  years  when  the  Tudors  reigned.  She  nerer 
lost  her  identity.  She  lost  her  old  monasteries,  it  is  true,  and  cast  off 
many  errors  that  the  foreign  clergy  had  introduced ;  but  the 
bishops  and  parochial  clergy  retained  their  respective  positions,  per- 
formed their  duties  in  the  same  churches  to  the  same  congregations, 
and  retained  such  endowments  as  the  monastic  system  had  allowed 
them  to  keep.  Corruptions  were  cut  away,  sometimes  at  the  expense 


104 


NOTES   ON    CHUKCH  HISTORY. 


and  loss  of  much  that  was  good ;  the  usurped  power  of  the  Popes 
was  successfully  overthrown  ;  but  no  new  Church  mat  founded. 
None  of  the  Tudor  princes  ever  thought  of  such  a  thing,  nor  was 
anything  done  by  them  with  the  assistance  of  Parliament,  that  in 
any  way  affected  the  National  Church,  unless  the  Church  herself  had 
previously  assented  to  the  changes  in  her  representative  Convocations. 


GENEALOGICAL      TABLE. 


LANCASTRIANS. 


EDWAKD    III. 


YORKISTS. 


Edward 
(Black  Prince). 

RICHARD  II. 


John  of  Gaunt, 
D.  of  Lancaster. 


Edmund. 
D.  of  York. 


HENRY   IV. 


|  Richard, 

John  Beaufort,     E.  of  Cambridge. 
E.  of  Somerset. 


John  Beaufort, 
HENRY  V.= Catharine =0wen  TUDOR.  D.  of  Somerset. 

!  I  I 

Edmund  Tudor  —  Margaret  Beaufort. 


Richard, 
D.  of  York. 


HENRY   VI. 

(End  of 
Lancastrian  line). 


EDWARD  IV.    Clarence 
(killed). 


I  I 

EDWARD  V.     Richard. 


(killed). 


HENRY  VII. ^Elizabeth. 
I  I 


STUARTS. 


RICHARD  III. 

(End  of 
Yorkist  line). 

TUDORS. 


Jlargaret=James  IV.  of  Scotland.        Arthur. 
I 


Mary 
(from  whom 


HENRY  VIII.       was  descended 
Lady  Jaue  Grey). 


James  V.  of  Scotland. 


Mary,  Queen  of  Scota.        MARY. 

James  VI.  of  Scotland,  who  became  JAMES  I.  of  England. 


I 
EDWARD  VI. 


ELIZABETH 
(End  of  Tudor  line). 


PART    V. 

0f  (Knglanft  tmter 


CHAPTER  XXI.  (A.D.   1603—1625). 
THE  GROWTH  OF  PURITANISM. 

"  In  doctrine  and  communion  they  have  sought 
Firmly  between  the  two  extremities  to  steer ; 
But  theirs  the  wise  man's  ordinary  lot, 
They  prophecy  to  ears  that  will  not  hear." — Wordsworth. 

1. — The  Seventeenth  Century.1 — The  epoch  with  which  this 
division  deals  is  characterised  throughout  by  a  struggle  for  Consti- 
tutional Government  in  Church  and  Realm  against  the  despotic 
power  of  the  Crown.  Theoretically  the  laity  had  their  representa- 
tives in  Parliament  during  the  reigns  of  the  Tudors,  and,  also  in 
theory,  the  clergy  had  their  representatives  in  Convocation  ;  but 
both  clergy  and  laity  had  their  constitutional  liberty  restricted  by 
the  personal  authority  of  the  monarch.  And  just  as  the  independent 
spirit  of  the  Puritan  ministers  was  restrained  by  the  Royal  Injunc- 
tions and  the  Court  of  High  Commission,  so  the  murmurings  of  the 
Commons  were  suppressed  by  the  Star  Chamber  Courts.  By  the 
close  of  Elizabeth's  reign  the  monarchy  was  almost  absolute,  and 
when  James  VI.  of  Scotland  succeeded  her  as  James  I.  of  England,  in 
1603,  he  found  it  advantageous  to  cling  to  the  most  extreme  view  of 
royal  supremacy  by  propagating  the  new  doctrine  of  '  passive 
obedience '  from  bo'th  clergy  and  laity  to  the  Divine  Right  of 
hereditary  rulers.  During  the  whole  of  the  17th  century  these 
pretensions  of  the  Crown  "  were  subjected  to  a  process  of  continual 
challenge,  in  ecclesiastical  as  in  all  other  affairs.  Parliament  was 
gradually  establishing  its  present  position  ;  and  the  bishops  and 
clergy  were  being  taught  to  relinquish  one  set  of  relations  for 

1  The  writer  is  indebted  for  many  thoughts  in  this  portion  rf  the  book  (besides  the 
usual  earlier  authorities),  to  Mr.  VTakeman's  summary  of  the  Chu+ch  of  the  Puritans 
(Longmans  2j.  6</.),  to  Prof  essor  Burrows'  Parliament  ana  the  Church  of  England 
(Seeley  2s.  6J.),  to  Mr.  Gardiner's  Puritan  Revolution  (Longxans  2j.6</.),  to  Canon 
Overton's  Life  in  the  English  Church  1660 — 1714  (Lonan  an;  l?j.  &</.),  to  Dr. 
Stoughton's  Church  of  the  Revolution  (Hortder  and  Struuhtou  1  *.),  and  to  Mr. 
Hale' 3  Fall  of  the  Stuarts  (Longman*  2*.  &£>. 


106  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES   0A 

another,  to  exchange  their  h 


the 


of  the  assertion  of  lay  rights,  and  the  ^nowie  g 

the  exercise  of  those  rights      ^toa***™^    V  are  by 


prestige  and  t          ditions  o    the 


in    part    remodel    her  /^  JSpime  3  the  Catholic 
unimpaired  the  taith  and  _  the  discipline  o  England    and 


of  TithcentuTy"  troubles,  it  is  necessary  t( 
at  the  Scottish  Reformation. 
a.  scotch  Prosy ter^nism -Fro* .the ^J^J^d 

%"%^^&*%%$^r«r^3£ 


' 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY.  107 

was  induced  (A.D.  1190)  to  declare  the  Scotch  Church  independent 
of  any  authority  outside  his  own.  After  that  the  Scotch  clergy 
fell  into  the  worldly-minded  habits  of  mediaeval  Christianity,  and 
many  scandalous  proceedings  are  recorded  ;  as  when  an  illegitimate 
son  of  the  Scotch  king  James  IV.,  a  child  of  sixteen  years,  was  created 
archbishop  and  primate  over  the  Scottish  bishops  with  the  sanction 
of  Pope  Julius  II.  ;  until  the  cry  went  up  in  Scotland  as  elsewhere 
that  the  Church  should  be  purified.  But  the  Scottish  reformation 
came  like  a  deluge,  sweeping  away  the  good  and  the  bad  together, 
until  nothing  was  left  of  the  Apostolic  constitution  which  had 
descended  from  the  old  Celtic  Christianity.  John  Knox.  to  whom 
we  have  already  referred  as  an  exile  in  Geneva,  was  the  leader  of  the 
Scotch  reformers  ;  and  the  example  of  England,  with  which  his 
position  of  chaplain  to  Edward  VI.  had  made  him  familiar,  was 
speedily  followed  in  the  destruction  of  the  Scottish  monasteries. 
During  the  primacies  of  Archbishop  Beatoun  and  his  successor 
in  the  see  of  St.  Andrews,  Cardinal  Beatoun,  several  reformers  were 
burnt  for  heresy,  notably  Patrick  Hamilton  and  George  Withart. 
The  latter  was  an  exemplary  and  learned  man,  much  beloved  by 

many  to  whom  he  had  preached, 
and  he  was  terribly  avenged. 
Sixteen  zealots  led  by  Norman 
Leslie  stormed  the  castle  of  the 
cardinal  who  condemned  the 
reformer,  and  killed  him.  They 
flung  his  body  upon  the  battle- 
ments of  the  castle  at  the  place 
whence  he  had  watched  the 
burning  of  Wishart.  Leslie, 
however,  had  a  private  feud 
with  Beatoun,  which  some  con- 
sider the  true  cause  of  the 
assassination.  This  was  in  1546. 
The  Papalists  redoubled  their 
efforts  to  repress  religious  re- 
formers, but  that  only  served 
to  spread  their  doctrines.  John 
Knox  returned  to  Scotland 
finally  in  the  year  Ip59,  at  a 
time  when  the  reformers  were 
about  to  defend  their  head- 
quarters in  Perth  by  force  of 
arms.  He  preached  a  sermon 
to  them  against  image  worship 
with  such  effect  that  the  ex- 
cited multitude  immediately 
destroyed  the  ornaments,  etatuary,  and  stained  glass  in  every 


108 


ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    ON 


church  of  the  city,  which  they  followed  up  by  demolishing  the 
stately  Carthusian  monastery  there.  "  The  examples  of  the  reformers 
in  Perth  was  followed  in  St.  Andrew's  and  other  places ;  and 
we  have  to  regret  that  many  beautiful  buildings  fell  a  sacrifice 
to  the  fury  of  the  lower  orders,  and  were  either  totally  destroyed  or 
reduced  to  piles  of  shapeless  ruins."  (Scott).  Civil  war  resulted 
(1560)  ;  English  troops  sent  by  Elizabeth  being  allied  with  the 
reformers  against  French  soldiers  who  upheld  the  papal  party. 
Henceforward  and  for  twelve  years  John  Knox  became  despotic 
ruler  of  Scotland.  His  preaching  induced  the  Scotch  to  return  an 
overwhelming  major- 
ity of  reformers  to 
the  Scottish  Parlia- 
ment ;  and  they  at 
once  proceeded  to 
give  statutory  effect 
to  his  teaching  by 
abolishing  not  only 
the  papal  usurpation, 
but  everything  be- 
longing to  the  ancient 
Catholic  and  Apos- 
tolic Christianity,  in 
favour  of  everything 
belonging  to  the  Cal- 
vinistic  doctrines  and 
method  of  Church 
government.  Episco- 
pacy was  done  away, 
and  all  the  old  paro- 
chial and  cathedral 
churches  converted 
to  Presbyterian  uses  ; 
although  quite  un- 
fitted in  their  con- 
struction and  design 
for  such  use.  With  so 
little  reverence  were  KELSO  ABBEY. 

these  sacred  edifices  regarded  that  they  were  often  used  for  secular 
purposes  until  public  opinion  cried  shame.  The  Lamentations  oj 
Scotland  thus  bewailed  their  alienation. 

'  The  rooms  appointed  for  people  to  consider, 

To  hear  God's  word ;  where  they  should  pray  together — 

Are  now  converted  in  sheep  cots  and  folds, 

Or  else  are  fallen,  because  none  them  upholds. 

The  parish  Kirks  I  ween  they  sae  misguide 

That  none  for  wind  and  rai:i  '  herein  may  bide.' 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY.  109 

Still  more  sad  was  the  fanatical  destruction  of  the  Scotch  religious 
houses.  It  was  enough  for  the  multitude  that  John  Knox  had  said  '  the 
true  way  of  banishing  the  rooks  is  to  pull  down  their  nests  ; '  and  the 
ruins  of  lona,  Melrose,  Dryburgh,  Kelso,  Arbroath,  Jedburgh,  Dumf  er- 
line,  etc.,  sufficiently  attest  how  thoroughly  his  maxim  was  applied.  He 
may  not  himself  have  wielded  a  hammer  or  an  axe  to  destroy  such 
noble  monuments  of  bygone  Scottish  devotion,  but  he  stirred  the  people 
up  to  deeds  of  vigorous  iconoclasm  at  the  thought  of  which  we  shudder. 
It  is  right  to  remember  that  the  monasteries  in  Great  Britain  were  not 
all  destroyed  by  Henry  VIII.  His  commissioners  had  no  authority 
beyond  the  Tweed,  for  Scotland  was  not  then  united  to  England. 
John  Knox  proposed  to  endow  a  national  Presbyterian  Church  with 
the  revenues  of  Scotch  monasteries,  but  the  Lords  of  the  Congregation 
circumvented  him.  "  His  plan  was,"  they  said,  "  a  devout  imagi- 
nation,' a  visionary  scheme,  which  shewed  the  goodness  of  the 
preacher's  intentions,  but  which  it  was  impossible  to  carry  into 
practice  "  (Scotf).  The  Scottish  Reformation  materially  differed  from 
that  in  England.  Our  land  has  always  retained  the  ancient  Chris- 
tianity and  kept  true  to  the  'Apostolic  doctrine  and  fellowship.' 
But  Scotland,  in  1560,  by  one  legislative  stroke  in  a  day  of  fanatical 
madness,  solemnly  abjured  and  repudiated  the  ancient  Catholic  faith 
and  worship  in  order  to  get  rid  of  papal  authority  ;  instead  of 
endeavouring  to  restore  the  undoubted  independent  rights  of  the 
ancient  Church  as  was  done  in  England.  This  matter  has  been 
referred  to  because  the  prestige  of  Presbyterianism  in  Scotland  gave 
the  English  advocates  of  the  system  greater  importance  ;  and  perhaps 
may  account  in  some  degree  for  the  bitter  political  opposition  to  it 
by  the  English  constitutional  party.  At  the  same  time  we  should 
bear  in  mind  that  Calvin's  method  of  Church  government  was  the 
only  definite  religious  system  which  presented  itself  in  those  days,  as 
an  alternative  to  the  Episcopacy  which  many  clergy  and  laity,  who 
wished  to  prevent  any  subsequent  efforts  of  Spain  and  the  Jesuits 
to  re-introduce  papal  supremacy,  were  unable  to  dissociate  from 
Romanism.  The  cry  of  '  A'o  Popery '  was  bred  of  a  wholesome 
national  antipathy  to  an  odious  foreign  tyranny  ;  but  it  was  fed  and 
nourished  upon  an  equally  foreign  idea  that  everything  that  had 
been  touched  or  used  by  Rome  was  necessniily  false  and  vicious. 
Whereas  (speaking  historically,  and  apart  from  the  question  of  her 
accretions  of  error  and  unauthorised  dogma)  there  can  be  no  doubt 
that  the  Church  of  Rome  was  as  much  a  true  and  Apostolic  branch  of 
the  Catholic  Church  for  Italy,  as  our  own  National  Church  is  for 
England.  It  is  equally  certain  that  Calvin's  system  was  quite  as 
intolerant  of  all  other  religions  as  the  arrogant  papacy ;  and  they 
were  far  sighted  men  who,  in  the  chaos  of  reforming  opinions,  were 
able  to  perceive  that  adherence  to  ancient  and  orthodox  belief  and 
practice,  as  recently  purified  from  corruption,  was  the  only  logical  and 
safe  course  for  the  Church  in  England  to  pursue. 


110 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


3.  The  Hampton  Court  Conference. — As  soon  as  it  was 
known  that  James  VI.  of  Scotland  was  to  be  the  English  king  also, 
all  parties  pressed  their  congratulations  upon  him  and  sought  to 
obtain  his  patronage;  but  he  soon  made  it  plain  to  them  that  he 
would  continue  to  maintain  Elizabeth's  order  of  government  and 
procedure.  The  religious  parties  at  that  time  were  (1)  the  loyal 
members  of  the  National  Church  ;  (2)  the  disaffected  Komanists, 
who  had  not  yet  given  up  all  hopes  of  obtaining  the  kingdom  for 
the  pope  ;  and  (3)  the  equally  disaffected  Puritans,  who  supposed 
that  the  advent  of  a  king  who  had  ruled  Presbyterian  Scotland 
would  help  forward  their  schemes.  The  leaders  of  the  latter,  com- 
prising the  extreme  separatists  and  many  clergymen  within  the 
Church  of  England  who  upheld  Calvin's  theories,  drew  up  a  manifesto 
for  presentation  to  King  James  (1603).  It  is  known  as  the  Millenary 
Petition,  although  far  less  than  a  thousand  ministers  had  signed  it. 
In  it  they  pleaded  for  a  revision  of  the  Liturgy  which  should  exclude 
all  symbolism  (such  as  the  ring  in  marriage)  ;  and  all  words  which 


HAMPTON  COURT   PALACE,   temp.  JAMES   I. 


gave  a  sacerdotal  character  to  the  clergy,  or  implied  the  idea  ot  a 
sacrifice  in  their  sacramental  ministrations.  The  petition  also  prayed 
for  liberty  not  to  wear  the  surplice,  and  the  removal  of  certain 
abuses  of  patronage,  non-residence,  pluralities  and  discipline.  The 
result  of  this  Petition  was  that  the  king  called  together  an  assembly 
of  divines  at  his  palace  of  Hampton  Court  in  January,  1604  ;  at 
which  the  Puritans  were  asked  to  state  their  grievances,  with  a  view 
to  their  removal  if  they  were  found  to  be  real  ones.  James  I.  pre- 
sided. The  objections  were  found  to  be  chiefly  against  the  govern- 
ment of  the  Church;  and  in  favour  of  Presbyterianism,  as  in  Scotland, 
which  they  contended  was  best  for  the  peace  of  the  kingdomfand  the 
safety  of  the  monarch.  But  the  king  had  had  some  experience  of  its 
tendency  there,  and  was  glad  of  an  opportunity  to  be  rid  of  it.  He 
seized  the  first  chance  to^express  his^opinion  \  that j'  Presbyterianism 
agreeth  as  well  with  monarchy  as  God  and  the  devil.  .  .  .  Let  that 
government  be  once  up  we  shall  all  of  us  have  work  enough,  and  both 
our  hands  full.'  The  king  had  written  several  theological  books 
before  his  accession,  and  was  pleased  when  he  could  show  himself  an 
arbiter  of  religious  questions.  His  opinion  of  the  Puritans,  as 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  Ill 

expressed  in  his  speech  to  his  first  parliament,  was  that  they  were 
'  schismatics '  and  '  novelists.'  Probably  no  thought  of  schism  was  as 
yet  entertained  by  the  Puritans — but  only  a  desire  to  impose  their 
views  upon  other  people's  consciences.  They  agreed  that  there  ought 
to  be  uniformity,  but  it  must  be  an  uniform  observance  of  doctrine 
and  discipline  in  accordance  with  the  foreign  protestant  reforming 
ideas.  James  I.  was  convinced  that  Presbyterianism  was  moved  by  a 
democratic  principle,  destined  to  overthrow  monarchy,  which  ought 
to  be  suppressed  forthwith  as  dangerous  to  the  State — and  the  end 
proved  that  his  estimate  of  its  principles  was  correct.  The  attitude  of 
James  was  mainly  political,  but  Churchmen  were  willing  eaough  to 
be  used  by  him  as  agents  in  the  suppression  of  malcontents.  To  this 
end  the  Canons  drawn  up  by  Convocation  in  1603  were  submitted 
to  the  clergy  for  acceptance.  Those  Canons  are  still  the  rules  of  the 
English  Church  ;  and  a  perusal  of  them  will  show  how  harmless  was 
their  nature.1  Some  have  become  obsolete  by  force  of  custom,  but 
the  bulk  remain  as  a  standard  of  practice  for  the  clergy  ;  and  they 
clearly  explain  the  position  of  those  who,  at  the  conference  of 
Hampton  Court,  contended  for  the  '  ancient  customs.'  Several  minor 
alterations  were  made  in  the  Liturgy  as  the  result  of  the  conference, 
and  the  latter  part  of  the  Catechism  was  added;  but  the  plain  words 
of  the  proclamation,  printed  in  the  revised  issue  of  the  Prayer-Book 
to  which  all  were  bound  to  conform,  will  of  themselves  give  us  a 
contemporary  idea  of  the  nature  of  Puritan  demands,  and  the  desire 
of  those  in  authority  to  defend  the  ancient  usages. 

We  cannot  conceal  that  the  success  of  that  Conference  was  such  as  happeneth  to 
many  other  things,  which,  moying  great  expectation  before  they  be  entered  into,  in 
their  issue  produce  small  effects.  For  we  found  mighty  and  vehement  informations 
supported  with  so  weak  and  slender  proof?,  as  it  appeared  unto  us  and  our  Council, 
that  there  was  no  cause  why  any  change  should  have  been  at  all  in  that  which  was 
most  impugned,  the  Book  of  Common-Prayer,  containing  the  form  of  the  public 
Service  of  Q-od  here  established ;  neither  in  the  doctrine  which  appeared  to  be 
sincere,  nor  in  the  Forms  and  Bites  which  were  justified  out  of  the  practice  of  the 
Primitive  Church.  Notwithstanding  we  thought  meet,  with  consent  of  the  bishops 
and  other  learned  men  there  present,  that  some  small  things  might  rather  be 
ftrplained  than  changed  ;  not  that  the  same  might  not  very  well  have  been  borne 
with  by  men  who  would  have  made  a  reasonable  construction  of  them  ;  but  for  that 
in  a  matter  concerning  the  Service  of  God  we  were  nice,  or  rather  jealous,  that  the 
public  form  thereof  should  be  free,  not  only  from  blame,  but  from  suspicion ;  so  as 
neither  the  common  Adversary  should  have  advantage  to  wrest  ought  therein  con- 
tained, to  other  sense  than  the  Church  of  England  intendeth,  nor  any  troublesome  or 
ignorant  person  of  this  Church  be  able  to  take  occasion  of  cavil  against  it." 
The  Puritans  were  browbeaten,  but  in  no  way  convinced,  by  James  at 
the  Conference  ;  and  complained  that  they  had  been  unfairly  treated. 
Archbishop  Whitgift  died  on  the  last  day  of  February,  1604  ;  and  it 

1  A  reprint  of  them  can  be  bought  from  the  S.P  C.K.  for  Is. 


112 


ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    ON 


The  number  of  deprivations  is  said  by  J™  rurra  a  ^ 

300,  but  Archbishop  Bancroft^  a  ed  ^"^r  an  'insignificant 
way  we    see  that    the     isatte  etea    ceg  y  essential  to  the 

minority  ;  and  discipline  ,  WM  of  ^"g  t^  ^^  archbishop 


allowed  to    have  >    more    latitude  i 


4.  The  Onnpowder  2*S 
the  popes  had  come  to  8«  *«  ™™          had  written  to  Jama, 


4 

ment  when  such  a  design  was  c  ;r  statutes  of 

part  James    had    ^^.^^  ^^  to  &  acqmesooioe 

Elizabeth's  reign  agamstBomamstsm  ret 


'^SSfer^SSSSrsissriB 

h  •  Antichrist ';  .nd  so .rapidly  did  tte  J-JU^  rf 


Jesuits  sv/aau.  ^ 
member  of  the  Roman 
hig  tnought8)that 

Communion,  than  ^^^^  prie8t8  Out  of  the  country  and 
he  was  obliged  to  send  ^^^^"when  the  Romanists  found 
strictly  enforce  the  recusancy  8-  J^h  the  National  Church 
to  ia  » 


strictly  enorce  h  the  Natona        urc 

that  James  had  no  intentio    to  ^piay  »  horrible  idea  of 

K^*™* 
h^rP°thede^s  s^echd  It  the  opening  of  the 


!  The  Bomanists  wbo  refused  to  obey  fS^ 
ject  to  heavy  fines  for  non-at  tendan«  ^at  tt^  pam  ^  tom  ^  Latin  r* 
3days,  and  were  ^UeVf"wordwJ  applied  to  those  only  who  rejected  the  royal 
to  Bomanists  chiefly. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY.  113 

legislative  session.  The  chief  conspirators  were  Robert  Catesby,&t 
whose  manor  house  at  Ashby  St.  Leger  the  plot  was  hatched,  and 
Sir  Ererard  Digby,  who  provided  most  of  the  funds.  None  of  the 
conspirators  were  of  mean  estate,  and  they  solemnly  swore  by  the 
Blessed  Sacrament  not  to  divulge  their  plan  nor  cease  to  prosecute 
it  until  the  design  was  fulfilled.  Our  illustration  shows  the  London 
house  of  Catesby.  where  the  plot  was  matured.  For  eighteen 
months  the  preparations  went  on,  and  no  one  broke  the  oath  of 
secrecy.  A  vault  was  rented  under  the  Parliament  House,  and  there 
they  stored  thirty-six  barrels  of  gunpowder,  which  they  covered  over 
with  coals  and  sticks  ;  and  they  often  left  the  door  wide  open  to 


GCXPOWDEK    COXSPIBATORS'   HOUSE.   LAMBETH. 

allay  suspicion.  A  few  days  before  Parliament  assembled  Lord 
Miwnteagle.  a  Romanist  peer,  was  warned  by  an  anonymous  letter 
from  the  conspirators  not  to  po  to  the  opening  ceremony.  The 
letter  stated  that  Parliament  should  '  receive  a  terrible  blow  and  not 
see  who  hurts  them.'  Mounteagle  showed  it  to  the  prime  minister, 
who  laid  it  before  the  king  ;  and  James  at  once  suspected  what  was 
intended.  The  vaults  were  searched  and  the  gunpowder  discovered, 
but  care  was  taken  that  none  should  know  that  it  was  found  out  ; 
and  when  Git  i  do  Fatckcs.  the  conspirator  who  had  volunteered  to 
fire  the  train,  repaired  to  the  vault  to  make  his  final  preparations 
(Nov.  5,  1605)  he  was  surprised  and  captured.  The  other  conspirators 


114  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

aroused  suspicion  against  themselves  by  absconding  from  their 
London  lodgings  into  the  country.  They  were  pursued  and  over- 
taken ;  many  being  killed  while  fighting  desperately,  which  they 
preferred  to  an  ignoble  surrender ;  but  most  of  them  were  made 
prisoners  and  reserved  for  torture  and  execution.  As  the  result  of 
statements  extracted  from  them  a  proclamation  was  issued  against 
certain  Jesuit  Fathers ;  and  at  the  end  of  January,  1606,  all  the 
conspirators  suffered  the  sxtremest  penalty  provided  by  statute  for  the 
punishment  of  high  treason.  This  diabolical  conspiracy  deepened 
the  national  aversion  against  Romanism  into  indelible  hatred.  It 
availed  nothing  that  the  majority  of  Romanists  repudiated  the  plot 
and  regarded  it  with  loathing  ;  for  the  Parliament  which  had  so 
narrowly  escaped  destruction  passed  still  more  severe  laws  against 
'  popish  recusants.'  Henceforth  a  Romanist  was  not  allowed  to  enter 
any  profession  or  place  of  trust ;  their  houses  were  liable  to  be 
visited  at  all  times  by  the  magistrates ;  and  most  impolitic  of  all, 
they  were  forced  to  participate  periodically  in  '  the  Blessed  Sacrament 
of  the  Lord's  Supper '  in  their  parish  church.  Thenceforward 
Romanists  ceased  to  be  an  element  of  danger  to  the  State.  Outcasts 
from  honourable  society,  they  realised  that  their  personal  safety  con- 
sisted in  passive  obedience  to  the  law  ;  and  it  is  fair  to  say  that,  in 
spite  of  the  desire  of  the  Puritans,  the  statutes  against  them  were 
not  severely  enforced  after  the  first  flood  of  horror  had  subsided. 
The  annual  demonstrations  in  memory  of  that  fifth  of  November, 
and  the  regular  search  still  made  of  the  vaults  beneath  the  present 
Houses  of  Parliament  before  the  commencement  of  every  session,  shows 
how  abiding  is  the  recollection  of  the  danger  then  averted.  So 
providential  was  the  deliverance  felt  to  be,  that  a  special  form  of 
thanksgiving  service  was  annexed  to  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer 
for  use  on  the  anniversary ;  and  remained  there  until  the  year  1859. 
No  one  can  regret  its  disuse,  for  the  service  contained  many  phrases 
wanting  in  Christian  charity  towards  the  Church  of  Rome.  Deeply 
as  all  must  regret  the  connexion  between  Romanists  and  treason 
plots  in  days  gone'by,  and  however  much  we  may  deplore  her  defec- 
tion from  Apostolic  doctrine,  we  shall  not  mend  matters  by  our  own 
hard  words.  A  modern  poet  has  taught  us  a  more  excellent  way 

"Speak  gently  of  our  sister's  fall : 

Who  knows  but  gentle  lore 
May  win  her  at  our  patient  call 
The  surer  way  to  prove  ?  "     (Keble.) 

Meanwhile  James  I.  had  prevailed  upon  the  Scots  to  receive  a  number 
of  bishops  as  '  constant  moderators  '  for  their  Presbyteries.  Three 
Scotchmen  were  afterwards  selected  for  consecration  and  sent  to 
London.  (A.D.  1610.)  The  Scotch  Parliament  had  previously 
restored  the  episcopal  estates  that  had  been  seized  in  the  time  of 
John  Knox.  The  Scotch  prelates  were  duly  consecrated  by  the 


ENGLISH  CHURCH   HISTORY. 


115 


bishops  of  London,  Worcester,  Rochester,  and  Ely,  and  empowered 
to  form  a  High  Commission  Court  for  Scotland.  On  their  return  to 
the  north  they  consecrated  other  bishops  ;  and  in  1618  they  issued  the 
Five  Perth  'Articles  which  enforced  kneeling  at  the  reception  of 
Holy  Communion,  observance  of  the  great  festivals  of  the  Church, 
instruction  of  the  young  in  the  Creed,  Lord's  Prayer,  and  Ten  Com- 
mandments, Private  Communion  to  sick  folk,  and  Private  Baptism 
to  children  in  danger.  As  yet  there  was  no  regular  Scotch  Liturgy. 

5.  The  Authorised  Version.— Although  no  alteration  of  conse- 
quence took  place  in  the  liturgy  as  the  result  of  the  Hampton  Court 


Conference,  an  important  retranslation  of  the  Scriptures  was  decided 
on.  James  clearly  saw  that  a  new  translation  would  add  to  the 
glory  of  his  reign,  and  heartily  welcomed  the  proposal.  Forty-seven 
scholars  were  selected  from  both  universities,  and  the  learned  clergy 
of  all  schools  of  thought,  who  were  divided  into  six  companies  :  two 
of  which  met  at  Oxford,  two  at  Cambridge,  and  two  in  the  Jerusalem 
Chamber  at  Westminster  Abbey.  Each  scholar  took  one  chapter  at  a 
time  for  careful  revision,  and  his  emendations  would  be  carefully 
revised  by  his  company  and  then  handed  on  for  final  revision  to  the 

•  2 


116  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

other  companies  in  turn.  The  object  was  not  to  make  a  new  trans- 
lation altogether,  for  the  text  of  '  Parker's  Bible  '  was  to  be  used  as  a 
basis  ;  and  it" was  not  to  be  altered  either  in  phrase  or  division  of 
chapters,  except  where  necessary  for  the  sake  of  accuracy.  The 
revisers  were  allowed  to  make  marginal  notes  in  explanation  of 
Hebrew  and  Greek  words,  and  insert  cross  references  to  parallel 
passages  in  other  parts  of  the  Bible,  but  the  king  instructed  the 
revisers  that  no  other  marginal  comments  should  be  added,  because 
he  had  found  in  the  Genevan  translation  'some  notes  very  partial, 
untrue,  seditious,  and  savouring  too  much  of  dangerous  and  traitorous 
conceits.'  No  pains  were  spared  by  the  translators,  and  no  time 
begrudged,  for  the  work  was  a  labour  of  love ;  and  in  the  year  1611 
they  published  that  which  has  ever  since  been  considered  the  greatest 
treasure  of  English  literature  ;  known  to  us  as  the  Authorised 
Version  of  the  Bible  ;  which  is  still  used  by  Churchmen  and  Non- 
conformists alike  as  the  pure  Word  of  God— 'able  to  make  us  wise 
unto  Salvation.'  Thus  the  English  Bible  is  the  gift  to  the  world  of 
scholars  belonging  to  the  Church  of  England  ;  and  as  the  Scriptures 
have  in  all  ages  been  her  standard  of  duty,  nothing  will  be  found  in 
her  doctrines  or  services  opposed  to  its  spirit  or  plain  teaching.  The 
1611  Version  was  the  first  Bible  printed  in  the  modern  Roman  type  ; 
all  previous  editions  were  in  '  Old  English '  characters.  The 
laudatory  preface  '  To  the  most  high  and  mighty  prince  James,'  still 
printed  at  the  beginning  of  the  English  Bible,  serves  to  show  how 
impossible  it  was  in  those  days  to  avoid  extravagant  flattery  of 
patrons.  A  final  reference  may  here  be  made  to  the  necessity  of 
Biblical  revisions.  With  the  changes  of  custom  as  ages  rolled  along 
came  the  adaptation  of  old  words  to  new  meanings,  and  of  new 
words  to  things  old  ;  while  intercourse  with  other  countries  caused 
the  incorporation  of  foreign  words  into  our  vernacular  ;  until  many 
ancient  words  appeared  obsolete,  and  modern  ones  were  required  to 
express  the  older  sense.  But  there  is  a  greater  reason  than  this  why 
the  authorised  translation  of  the  Scriptures  should  be  revised  from 
time  to  time  ;  as  wa's  recently  done  in  the  same  Jerusalem  Chamber 
at  Westminster,  whence  the  Revised  Version  was  issued,  the  New 
Testament  in  1881  and  the  Old  Testament  in  1885.  The  friendship 
of  our  country  with  other  lands  has  enabled  us  to  compare  the 
manuscripts  from  which  earlier  translations  were  made  with  still 
more  ancient  manuscripts  preserved  in  foreign  theological  libraries. 
The  careful  collation  of  these  manuscripts,  so  as  to  find  out  which 
passages  have  the  greatest  authority  and  which  are  doubtful,  has 
enabled  modern  scholars  to  furnish  us  with  a  much  more  'exact 
rescript  than  the  means  available  300  years  ago  could  do  ;  and 
therefore,  in  spite  of  its  frequent  interference  with  the  rhythm  of  the 
older  translation,  the  Revised  Version  will  always  be  preferred  by 
those  who  value  accuracy,  although  it  may  not  be  publicly  read  in 
Church  services.  Those  who  consider  the  modern  revision  unsuc- 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  117 

cessful,  because  it  is  not  issued  with  authority,  should  remember 
that  it  took  many  years  for  the  '  Authorised  '  Version  to  win  its  way 
into  public  favour;  for  many  continued  to  use  the  older  versions 
which  they  had  learned  to  love,  just  as  many  people  now,  forgetting 
that  all  English  Versions  are  merely  translations  from  the  ancient 
Hebrew  and  Greek,  imagine  each  word  and  letter  of  the  1611  trans- 
lation to  be  a  voice  from  God.  On  the  other  hand,  the  fact  that  so 
many  still  prefer  the  version  dedicated  to  James  I.  may  be  taken  as 
proof  that  in  spite  of  the  flood  of  criticism  and  abuse  heaped  upon  it 
by  grammarians,  scholars,  and  fault-finders  generally,  its  rhythmical 
cadences  that  fall  so  pleasantly  on  our  accustomed  ears  are  remark- 
ably true  to  the  original ;  and  that  no  great  doctrine  taught  by  it 
has  been  given  up  by  the  most  searching  comparisons  of  recent  days. 
One  who  in  our  own  generation  left  his  ancestral  Church  of  England 
for  the  Roman  Communion  (Z>r.  Faber)  must  have  mingled  heartfelt 
regrets  in  his  retrospect  of  the  past  when  he  wrote  of  the  Authorized 
Version  that  "  it  lives  on  the  ear  like  a  music  which  can  never  be 
forgotten,  like  the  sound  of  church  bells,  which  the  convert  scarce 
knows  how  he  can  forego.  Its  felicities  seem  often  to  be  almost 
things  rather  than  words.  It  is  part  of  the  national  mind,  and  the 
anchor  of  the  national  seriousness.  .  .  .  The  memory  of  the  dead 
passes  into  it.  The  potent  traditions  of  childhood  are  stereotyped  in 
its  verses.  It  is  the  representative  of  a  man's  best  moments  ;  all  that 
there  has  been  about  him  of  soft,  and  gentle,  and  pure,  and  penitent, 
and  good  speaks  to  him  for  ever  out  of  his  English  Bible." 

6.  The  Puritans. — King  James  had  closed  the  Hampton  Court 
Conference  with  this  parting  threat  to  the  Puritans  : — ••  I  will  make 
them  conform,  or  harry  them  out  of  the  land."  Consequently  many 
of  the  ministers  who  refused  subscription  to  the  acts  of  uniformity  or 
the  canons  ecclesiastical  and  were  deprived,  together  with  numerous 
upholders  who  declined  to  attend  the  parish  church,  found  a  home 
elsewhere,  at  first  in  Holland  and  afterwards  beyond  the  Atlantic. 
The  first  permanent  settlement  of  Englishmen  in  America  was  in 
Virginia  (A.D.  1607-8)  ;  though  that  was  not  a  colony  of  religions 
refugees,  but  an  incorporated  company  under  royal  charter,  whose 
members  conducted  their  religious  worship  on  Church  of  England 
lines  exclusively.  In  1620  a  band  of  Separatists  sailed  in  the  Jfa  >/  r 
from  Leyden,  in  Holland,  and  after  encountering  many  hardships 
landed  on  the  eastern  coast  of  America,  inside  Cape  Cod,  at  a  place 
they  called  Plymouth,  in  memory  of  the  last  English  land  they  had 
seen,  and  that  little  colony  became  the  nucleus  of  what  are  now  the 
'  Isew  England '  States.  Ten  years  later  there  commenced  to  flow 
from  Old  England  a  constant  stream  of  harassed  Puritans,  with 
John  Winthrop  for  their  head,  and  these  founded  the  cities  of  Boston, 
Mass.,  1630  ;  Providence,  S.I..  1636  ;  and  3'eicharen,  Conn.,  1638, 
By  1640  it  was  computed  tnat  twenty  thousand  emigrants  had  found 


U8  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

„     ,1    _       A  1  — .•„!,* TT          P.nf   tVlPV  WPTft  not 


a  home  where  religious 
toleration  might  be  had, 
but  insisted  on  making 
their     own    intolerant 
Puritanism       supreme 
and  exclusive.    All  who 
declined  to  accept  their 
interpretation  of  doubt- 
ful passages  of  Scripture 
were  banished  from  the 
colony,   and  any   who, 
having     accepted      it. 
sinned     against    their 
moral  code,  were  rigor- 
ously punished.1  In  spite 
of  their  intolerance   it 
was  the  need  of  peace 
and      personal      piety 
which  caused   them  to 
find  a  new  home.     The 
age  they  lived  in  was- 
vicious  in  the  extreme, 
and  there  were  no  longer 
any  monastic  societies 
in    which    austerity   of 
life  could  be  cultivated. 
The    frivolity    of     the 
time  was  expressed  in. 
the    silks    and    satins.. 
|    frills  and  velvets  worn 
by  gentlemen ;  while  its- 

graver  vices  weieopenly 

PURITAN  COSTUMES.  manifested    by   intern- 

p^^ert^k^.^u^^^ep^^^ejljgejlj. 

jaassasSsS^SSSar^r 
^SSSK^A^^^^^^S. 

T  .°r,l,  «* ..  -.  •»•  r^asMSE*. -«  KK™«  s 

It  brought  o,,ttl,e  .or.tpoi.it  1^ the  P.mttn  ok.™ =W '-^      Mt          bt  ,,,em  . 
«bicl,.toPuriM.to.lb«e«<~;e«r't^''1fS  M  ,„„!,    ,J«t."-M.rsd.,,  > 

'TX  '7S.™S'.«"W.  ».,  At. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY.  119 

hair  close  by  way  of  contrast  to  the  fashionable  follies  ;  and  when 
King  James  issued  his  famous  Book  of  Sports  (1618)  as  a  corrective 
to  the  objectionable  revels  of  social  gatherings,  or  local  fairs  and 
festivals,  they  responded  by  pablications  in  which  all  pleasures, 
amusements,  and  personal  adornments  were  declared  sinful.  Of 
their  conscientiousness  and  zeal  there  can  be  no  doubt  at  all,  and  we 
need  not  comment  upon  their  ostentatious  pretensions  to  higher 
spirituality  than  other  folk.  What  we  deplore  is  their  defection 
from  the  paths  of  Catholic  antiquity  in  favour  of  novel  systems  of 
worship  and  doctrine.  Their  affectation  was  an  exaggeration  of  the 
truth  that  man  has  a  personal  relationship  with  the  Creator,  from 
which  they  argued  that  each  individual  was  called  upon  to 
settle  for  himself  the  form  of  worship  most  suited  to  his  own  con- 
dition. This  attitude  was  taken  up  specially  by  the  separ 
who  in  time  were  called  Independent* ;  and  they  were  as  much 
opposed  to  Presbyterianism  as  they  were  to  Episcopacy,  simply 
because  they  objected  to  every  religious  organisation  or  government, 
each  preferring  to  be  a  law  unto  himself. 

7.  Abbott  and  Land.  — Archbishop  Abbott  had  made  his  house 
'  a  sanctuary  for  the  most  eminent  of  the  factious  party,  and  he 
licensed  their  most  pernici  !  ''.-.ire iultw~),  so  that  he  soon 

lost  the  favour  of  King  James.  But  not  before  he  had  shown  that 
he  could  be  intolerant  and  cruel,  by  assisting  to  revive  the  statute 
for  burning  heretics.  In  1612  two  poor  men  were  burnt  for  their 
religious  opinions: — Bartkalomao Legate, at  SmithneU.  March 3;  and 
ii-d  Wiyhti>mn.  at  Lichfield.  April  11  ;  for  propagating  Arian 
interpretations  of  certain  passages  in  Scripture.  It  was  many  years 
si  uce  people  had  been  so  put  to  death,  and  so  indignant  were  the 
people  that  it  was  never  resorted  to  again  for  heresy.  When 
Abbott  went  into  retirement  the  chief  religious  adviser  of  the  crown 
was  Dr.  Will  to.  m*.  bishop  of  Lincoln ;  who  received  the  great  seal 
also  (after  Lord  Chancellor  Bacon  had  been  impeached  for  flagrant 
bribery),  and  in  the  next  reign  became  archbishop  of  York.  The 
favourite  at  court  was  the  versatile  and  immoral  VHiier»  Duke  of 
Buckingham  ;  whose  steps  were  dogged  by  the  greatest  in  the  land 
whenever  they  wanted  any  piece  of  promotion.  Under  Williams 
and  Buckingham  an  anti-  party  in  the  Church  came  into 

favour,  which  was  nicknamed  Arminian.  although  there  is  nothing  to 
show  that  its  leaders  were  in  any  way  connected  with  the  Dutch 
movement  properly  so  called.1  The  spiritually-minded  bishop  of 

1  James  ffarmensfx,  Latin  A  rmim'us,  was  a  professor  of  Divinity  in  the  L'ni  • 
of  Leyden.  His  opinions  were  opposed  to  Calvin's  theories  on  tbe  Fire  points  of 
Election,  Redemption,  Free  Will.  Grace. and  Final  Perseverance.  He  died  in  16  &, 
and  his  views  were  condemned  at  tl.e  Calvin  istic  Synod  of  Deri,  A.  D.  1618 ;  to  which 
James  I.  sent,  as  rcpresemting  tbe  English  Churcli,  the  Bishop  of  LlandafF,  the  dean 
of  Worcester,  and  two  Cambridge  protestors.  Tbe  English  movement  wa*  quite 
independent  of  him  and  his  works. 


120  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

Ely,  Latmcelot  Andrews,  following  in  the  wake  of  Richard  Hooker, 
may  be  considered  the  father  of  the  party,  although  not  its  chief 
exponent.  The  object  of  its  members  was  to  resist  the  advance  of 
Calvinistic  principles,  as  seen  in  Presbyterianism,  by  an  appeal  to 
history,  reason,  and  Scripture ;  so  as  to  demonstrate  that  Episcopacy  is 
a  divinely  ordered  form  of  Church  government,  that  the  Church 
of  England  in  her  organisation,  discipline,  ceremonial,  doctrine  and 
liturgy  could  claim  relationship  to  the  Apostolic  Church  by  an 
unbroken  lineage,  and  that  her  reforms,  and  repudiation  of 
papal  control,  did  not  put  her  out  of  harmony  with  other  National 
branches  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church.  This  involved  an  admission 
that  the  Church  of  Rome,  though  greatly  corrupted,  was  a  true 
lineal  descendant  of  the  Apostolic  Church  for  Italy ;  and  the 
national  dread  of  anything  that  tended  to  exalt  or  excuse  the 
papacy  brought  a  torrent  of  abuse  on  those  who  taught  such 
principles.  These  deductions  were  not  new,  and  they  were  un- 
deniably just  and  accurate,  but  it  may  be  doubted  whether  their 
exponents  were  wise  or  right  in  enforcing  them  to  their  logical 
conclusions  at  such  a  time.  The  leader  of  the  historic  party  was 
William  Laud,  who  as  fellow  of  St.  John'*?  College,  Oxford,  had 
broken  many  a  controversial  lance  with  Abp.  Abbott,  when  the  latter 
was  Master  of  University  College  in  that  city.  He  had  been  made 
chaplain  to  James  I.  in  1611  ;  and  in  1616  the  king  gave  him  the 
deanery  of  Gloucester,  where  the  cathedral  had  been  so  much  neglected 
that  James  said  to  Laud  :  '  Scarce  ever  a  church  in  England  is  so  ill 
governed  and  so  much  out  of  order.'  Laud  at  once  proceeded  to 
set  things  right  by  repairing  the  grand  edifice  (as  he  afterwards  did 
the  cathedral  church  of  St.  Paul  in  London),  promoting  reverence  in 
worship,  and  removing  the  Communion  Table  from  the  body  of  the 
church  to  the  east  end.  At  once  a  cry  of  '  popery '  was  raised  by  some, 
and  Laud  was  designated  '  a  priest  of  Baal '  by  others.  But  he  had 
convinced  himself  that  obedience  to  the  canon-law  of  the  Church  was 
binding  on  all  her  members,  and  not  even  for  his  bishop  would  he 
bow  to  the  storm.  He  braved  it  with  the  aid  of  the  High  Commis- 
sion court,  with  the  result  that  the  services  of  the  cathedral  were 
rendered  rubrically,  though  much  ill  feeling  was  engendered.  In  1621 
Laud  was  made  bishop  of  St.  David's,  and  the  following  year  held  a 
public  disputation  with  a  learned  Jesuit  named  Fisher,  which  King 
James  and  Buckingham  attended,  in  which,  following  Hooker 
and  Andrews,  he  showed  that  Church  of  England  doctrines 
were  more  than  a  system  of  negations  ;  for  that  they  had  been 
grounded  upon  Holy  Scripture,  were  in  accordance  with  primitive 
Christianity,  justified  by  human  reason,  and  approved  by  inward  con- 
viction. The  ability  with  which  Laud  conducted  this  controversy 
with  Fisher  increased  the  favour  in  which  he  already  stood  at 
court,  and  from  that  time  he  was  the  chief  ecclesiastical  adviser  of 
the  Crown. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY. 


121 


8.  Progress  of  Opposing  Principles.— The  Puritans  were 
very  bitter  at  Laud's  rapid  advancement,  and  endeavoured  to 
throw  all  the  odium  of  political  disturbances  upon  the  party  which 
he  favoured.  They  saw  that  toleration  was  being  extended  to 
Romanists,  that  the  penal  laws  were  not  strictly  enforced  against 
them,  and  that  recusancy  fines  were  often  remitted.  Negotiations 
had  long  been  pending  for  a  marriage  between  Prince  Charles, 
the  son  of  James  I.,  and  a  Spanish  princess,  which  the  nation 
resented  ;  and  although  they  came  to  nothing  they  served  to  put  the 
country  in  a  ferment.  The  popular  antipathy  increased  when  in  1623 

the  Pope  was  allowed 
to  send  a  bishop  in  par- 
tibus  to  superintend  the 
English  Romanists.who 
was  known  as  the 
Biihop  of  Chalcedon. 
The  Spanish  Armaca 
i-nd  the  Gunpowdtr 
Treason  were  still  fresh 
in  living  memories. and 
any  leanings  towards 
toleration  for  or  recon- 
ciliation with  recusants 
or  approximation  to 
their  modes  of  worship, 
however  historical  or 
primitive,  was  consid- 
ered by  many  to  be 
dangerous  to  the  peace 
of  the  realm.  More- 
over. James  1.  was  en- 
gaged in  a  struggle 
with  his  Parliament. 
His  ideas  of  the  •  Divine 
Right '  of  kings  led  him 
to  consider  himself  IT- 
WILLIAM  LAUD.  responsible  to  the  peo- 
ple, and  when  he  refused  to  give  an  account  to  Parliament  for  certain 
acts  which  they  considered  outside  his  prerogative  they  refused  to  pro- 
vide him  with  the  necessary  funds  for  keeping  up  the  court  and  cam  iug 
on  affairs  of  state  in  peace  or  war.  Because  the  lovers  of  Churct 
order  and  reverence  desired  to  enforce  obedience  to  canon-law  they 
upheld  the  authority  of  the  Crown  ;  while  those  who  wished  to  be 
free  from  all  restraint  in  religion  sided  with  the  Parliament.  Thus 
two  opposing  parties  were  rapidly  becoming  established  :  the  Anglo- 
Catholic,  which  identified  itself  with  absolute  monarchy,  and  the 
Puritan,  which  was  jealous  of  the  liberties  of  Parliament.  And 


122  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES   ON 

whereas  King  James  had  exceeded  his  prerogative  iu  levying  taxes 
without  consent  of  the  legislature,  so  did  Parliament  exceed  its 
rights  in  meddling  with  religious  affairs.  Many  time-serving  and 
sycophant  clergy  had  flattered  the  all-powerful  Buckingham  to  obtain 
preferment,  thus  bringing  the  Church  party  into  discredit ;  and  many 
earnest,  godly-minded  preachers,  who  were  shocked  at  the  corrup- 
tions at  court  and  in  society,  identified  themselves  with  the  separatists. 
Apart  from  politics  the  Church  of  England  was  invulnerable,  because 
it  had  the  intellectual  breadth  and  guidance  of  sixteen  centuries  of 
Christian  thought  and  discipline  ;  but  Puritanism  apart  from  politics 
had  HO  element  of  cohesion  whatever.  Yet  there  was  so  close  an 
intimacy  between  the  civil  and  ecclesiastical  relations  of  the  .Stuart 
times,  that i  a  distinct  advantage  was  acquired  by  the  opponents  of 
Church  principles  all  the  time  the  monarchy  persisted  in  asserting 
its  absolute  right  to  rule  without  question  or  control.  How  great  a 
matter  may  be  kindled  by  a  small  fire  is  aptly  illustrated  by  the 
undue  prominence  given  to  the  writings  of  a  parish  priest  named 
Richard  Mountagu.  The  Parliament  which  met  in  1624  was  well 
known  for  its  Puritan  bias,  and  it  received  a  petition  from  some 
Calvinistic  lecturer  respecting  a  pamphlet  called  '  A  ncm  gag  for 
an  old  goose,'  which  Mountagu  had  written  against  some  Jesuits 
who  were  proselytising  in  his  parish.  It  was  merely  a  reply, 
though  coarse  and  ill-judged,  to  a  brochure  of  the  Jesuits,  who 
had  supposed  certain  Puritan  fancies  to  be  Church  of  England 
doctrines.  In  it  he  took  the  strongest  possible  ground  for 
overthrowing  the  arguments  of  his  Jesuit  opponents  by  admitting 
that  the  Church  of  Rome  was  a  true  Church,  although  corrupt,  and 
claiming  for  the  English  Church  an  equally  historic  though  less 
superstitious  position  This  was  in  reality  the  position  taken  up  by 
Hooker,  and  Andrews,  and  Laud.  When  Parliament  proceeded  to 
inquire  into  the  matter,  Mountagu  denied  its  right  to  judge  matters 
of  doctrine,  and  appealed  to  the  king.  In  the  midst  of  the  contro- 
versy King  James  died  (March  27,  1625),  and  when  Parliament  met 
again  Mouutagu  had  been  made  chaplain  to  Charles  I.  The  new 
king  had  also  married  the  sister  of  the  king  of  France,  a  pronounced 
Romanist,  who  brought  with  her  a  crowd  of  French  attendants  and 
some  Romish  priests  ;  so  that  the  Puritanical  element  was  thoroughly 
roused.  When  Charles  asked  Parliament  for  money  to  carry  on  the 
war  against  Spain,  which  the  Duke  of  Buckingham  had  rashly  entered 
on,  it  only  voted  an  insignificant  sum  ;  and  spent  much  time  in  dis- 
cussing and  condemning  Mr.  Mountagu 's  new  book,  '  An  appeal  to 
Casar?  Charles  angrily  dissolved  that  Parliament  and  called 
another  (1626),  but  with  no  better  success;  for  it  impeached  the 
Duke  of  Buckingham,  and  returned  to  the  charge  against  Mountagu's 
book.  To  save  his  favourite  minister  the  king  at  once  dissolved  his 
second  Parliament,  and  had  recourse  to  the  system  of  forced  loans  to 
raise  money  for  his  expeditions.  Those  who  would  not  pay  he 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  12S 

imprisoned,  and  the  court  chaplains  were  set  to  preach  in  favour  of 
this  unconstitutional  proceeding.  They  did  so  with  vigour,  and 
returned  the  compliment  of  James  I..  •  X>>  bi*J>.oj>,  no  king.'  with 
compound  interest  in  terms  of  which  we  are  now  ashamed.  Dr. 
Sibthorpe,  e.g.,  preached  an  assize  sermon  at  Northampton  incul- 
cating the  duty  of  passive  obedience  to  the  king  even  when  his 
commands  were  opposed  to  Scripture.  Archbishop  Abbott  was  asked 
by  the  king  to  license  it  and  declined.  The  primate  was  suspended 
for  refusing.  A  Dr.  Jfainiraring  also,  rector  of  St.  Giles'  Cripple- 
gate,  maintained  that  regal  power  was  a  participation  of  Divine 
omnipotence,  and  that  Parliament  was  merely  an  assistant  of  the 
Crown.  Laud  remonstrated  against  this  extravagant  exaltation  of 
the  prerogative,  but  the  sermon  was  published  by  the  king's  com- 
mand and  proroked  much  ill  feeling. 


CHAPTER     XXII.     (A.D.  1625-1649). 
KIXG  versus  PARLIAMENT. 

•'  Weep,  oh  !  weep, 

Weep  with  the  good,  beholding  king  and  priest, 
Forsaken  by  the  God  to  whom  they  raise 
Their  suppliant  hands.    Bat  hoiy  is  the  feast 
He  keepeth,  like  the  firmament  His  ways, 
HU  statutes  like  the  chambers  of  the  deep." — Wordsworth. 

1.  The  Petition  of  Right.— No  one  need  doubt  the  sincerity 
and  uprightness  of  Charles  I.  From  infancy  he  was  trained  t« 
believe  in  the  '  divine  right  of  kings,'  he  placed  implicit  trust  in  his 
father's  counsellors,  and  believed  every  word  that  Sibthorpe  and 
Main  waring  preached  in  the  sermons  just  referred  to.  That  he  was 
grievously  misled  we  now  know  well,  and  we  are  willing  to  excuse 
some  of  the  results  of  that  misdirection  in  return  for  his  unfailine 
loyalty  to  the  National  Church  ;  but  it  would  be  wrong  to  conceal 
t*be  fact  that  the  subsequent  troubles  were  caused  by  his  ill-advised 
policy.  The  lash  expeditions  against  Spain  had  failed  ;  and  the 
French  attendants  of  the  queen  were  stirring  up  strife  at  court, 
because  penal  laws  against  the  recusants  continued  in  force  ;  although 
the  marriage  had  been  arranged  on  secret  conditions  that 'hey  should 
be  withdrawn.  That  of  course  the  country  would  never  have 
allowed,  and  the  queen's  attendants  and  clergy  were  driven  out  of 
F,ngland.  The  result  was  a  war  with  France,  and  more  money  was 
needed  which  Charles  tried  to  raise  by  forced  loans.  Buckingham 
led  the  first  expedition  against  the  French  by  attempting  to  relieve 
the  Huguenot  stronghold  of  La  Borhtlle  which  the  great  French 


124  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

statesman,  Cardinal  Richelieu,  was  at  the  time  besieging ;  and  having 
failed  disastrously  returned  to  England  for  further  supplies  of  money 
and  men.  As  there  was  no  hope  of  raising  funds  without  consent 
of  the  legislature,  Charles  called  together  a  third  Parliament  (1628)  ; 
but  the  members  refused  to  grant  any  subsidies  until  their  ancient 
privileges  were  restored.  They  objected  to  Laud's  opening  sermon, 
and  proceeded  to  appoint  a  committee  of  religion  to  discuss  the 
writings  of  Mountagu  and  Mainwariiig,  together  with  a  devotional 
book  for  private  use  which  John  Cosin  had  composed  by  the  king's 
request  to  counteract  the  pernicious  tendencies  of  the  devotional 
manuals  introduced  at  court  by  the  queen's  ladies.  Mainwaring 
was  prosecuted  before  the  House  of  Lords,  heavily  fined,  and 
suspended  from  ministerial  functions,  his  sermons  being  condemned 
by  proclamation  ;  but  the  king  retorted  by  remitting  the  fine,  revoking 
the  suspension,  and  presenting  the  offender  to  a  valuable  benefice. 
Parliament  then  threw  all  the  blame  of  their  civil  grievances  on 
Buckingham,  and  drew  up  the  famous  Petition  of  Right  which  pro- 
vided (1)  That  no  freeman  be  required  to  give  any  gift,  loan, 
benevolence,  or  tax,  without  common  consent  by  Act  of  Parliament ; 
(2)  That  no  freeman  be  imprisoned  or  detained  without  trial  or 
cause  shewn  ;  (3)  That  soldiers  and  mariners  should  not  be  billeted 
in  private  houses  or  punished  by  martial  law.  Charles  was  obliged 
to  assent  to  this  petition  or  bill  in  order  to  obtain  the  necessary 
subsidies.  It  was  an  effectual  check  to  the  absolutism  of  the  Stuarts. 
Charles  hoped  that  his  friend  Buckingham  might  regain  popularity 
by  a  second  and  more  successful  attempt  to  relieve  La  Rochelle  ;  but 
the  favourite  was  murdered  before  he  could  leave  Portsmouth  by  a 
man  named  John  Felton,  who  hoped  thus  to  do  his  country  a  service. 
Parliament  next  drew  up  a  Remonstrance  against  the  '  Arminian ' 
clergy,  especially  Bishop  Neile  of  Winchester  and  Bishop  Laud  ; 
which  the  king  warmly  resented.  He  at  once  prorogued  Parlia- 
ment, and  immediately  afterwards  Laud  was  made  Bishop  of 
London,  and  Mountagu  Bishop  of  Chichester.  The  Calvinists  now 
gained  ground  so  rapidly  that  the  king  was  advised  by  Laud  to  pre- 
fix a  Declaration  to  the  thirty-nine  articles  (it  is  still  printed 
before  them  in  our  Prayer-book),  which  declared  Convocation  to 
be  the  proper  body  to  order  and  settle  ecclesiastical  affairs  ;  that 
only  the  plain,  literal  and  grammatical  sense  shall  be  put  upon  the 
articles ;  and  that  all  disputations  respecting  them  should  cease. 
This  brought  matters  to  a  climax.  There  had  also  been  a  discussion 
as  to  the  meaning  of  the  Petition  of  Right :  the  Commons  alleging 
that  the  king  was  thereby  prohibited  from  levying  taxes  of  any  kind, 
while  the  king  claime4  that  as  it  did  not  expressly  mention  import 
duties  of  tunnage  on  wine,  and  poundage  on  certain  other  com- 
modities, he  had  still  the  right  to  levy  and  appropriate  those  duties. 
In  the  recess  several  London  merchants  refused  to  pay  the  customs 
duties  and  were  imprisoned.  When  Parliament  reassembled  a 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  125 

direct  attack  was,  not  unnaturally,  made  upon  the  Declaration.  The 
House  of  Commons  resolved  itself  into  a  Committee  of  Religion; 
and  a  Mr.  Rouse  proposed  that  Parliament  should  take  a 
solemn  vow,  by  which  all  interpretation  of  the  articles  that 
differed  in  any  way  from  the  Calvinistic  sense  was  to  be  rejected  ; 
Mr.  Pym.  in  support,  declaring  that  Parliament  alone  had  the  right 
'  to  establish  true  religion.'  The  latter  seemed  to  think  that  the  Lam- 
beth Articles  (page  98),  which  had  never  been  in  any  way  recognized 
by  the  Church,  were  the  only  true  tests  of  doctrine.  The  House 
worded  its  vow  accordingly ;  and  summoned  to  the  bar  some  clergy 
who  had  presumed  to  carry  out  the  services  of  the  Church  in  accord- 
ance with  the  rubrics ;  especially  Cosin,  and  others,  who  had  tried  to 
set  Dm  ham  Cathedral  in  order.  Pending  their  arrival  the  Commons 
considered  the  question  of  tunnage  and  poundage,  and  cited  the 
custom-house  officers  to  their  bar  for  having  detained  the  merchan- 
dise of  one  Rolle  who  happened  to  be  a  member  of  Parliament.  It 
seemed  as  if  they  wanted  members  engaged  in  trade  to  be  free  from 
the  imposts  other  merchants  had  to  pay  ;  for  they  deliberately  rejected 
Pym's  advice  to  make  a  general  claim  for  all  men  to  be  freed  from 
duties  not  imposed  by  Parliament,  and  persisted  in  treating  the  affair 
as  a  question  of  privilege,  by  which  their  own  members  were 
aggrieved  ;  although  their  House  had  not  been  deprived  of  Rolle's 
services,  seeing  that  the  seizure  took  place  when  Parliament  was  not 
sitting,  and  that  the  House  had  never  made  any  decree  on  the  sub- 
ject. Charles  I.  protected  the  customs  officers  as  having  obeyed  his 
orders,  and  commanded  the  adjournment  of  the  House  until  March  2. 
On  that  day  there  was  a  great  tumult,  and  Sir  John  Eliot  moved  a 
resolution  that  '  whoever  should  bring  in  religious  innovations,  or  seek 
to  extend  or  introduce  Popery  or  Arminianism,  or  levy  taxes  with- 
out consent  of  Parliament  should  be  reputed  a  capital  enemy  to  the 
kingdom  and  commonwealth.'  The  speaker  wished  to  adjourn  the 
House,  but  two  members,  Holies  and  Valentine,  held  him  down  in 
his  chair  by  force,  while  another  locked  the  doors  to  keep  the  House 
in  session.  The  king  was  kept  informed  of  the  proceedings,  and 
when  he  heard  of  the  speaker's  powerlessness  he  went  to  the  House 
accompanied  by  his  guards,  arriving  just  in  time  to  hear  the  vociferous 
shouts  of  '  aye  !  aye  '.'  which  indicated  that  the  resolution  was 
passed.  He  at  once  dissolved  the  Parliament,  and  did  not  call 
another  for  eleven  years. 

2.  Arbitrary  Civil  Government.— The  first  thing  after  the 
dissolution  of  Parliament  was  to  bring  Eliot,  Holies,  Valentine,  and 
others  before  the  Court  of  King's  Bench.  They  were  charged  with 
riot  and  sedition,  but  they  refused  to  acknowledge  the  authority  of 
the  tribunal.  For  refusing  to  pay  the  fines  imposed  they  were  com- 
mitted to  the  Tower,  where  ultimately  Eliot  died  and  was  buried. 
He  was  not  strong,  and  imprisonment  doubtless  hastened  his  end. 


126 


ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    ON 


He  firmly  oelieved  that  Parliament  was  the  controlling  power  of 
the  Constitution  and  independent  of  the  king.  Charles  felt  that  if 
the  estates  of  the  Realm  were  not  subject  to  his  rule  his  kingly 
dignity  would  be  at  an  end.  It  was  a  struggle  between  Parliamentary 
and  monarchical  despotism.  The  chief  advisers  of  Charles  hence- 
forward were  Bishop  Laud  and  Viscount  Went  worth,  afterwards  Earl 
of  Straff ord,  whom  the  king  had  won  over  from  the  Opposition  to  the 
cause  of  absolute  monarchy  (1630).  Straff  ord  sought  to  govern  by 
military  rule.  Weston  was  Lord  Treasurer  at  the  time  and  he  pro- 
posed all  manner  of  schemes  for  replenishing  the  exhausted  exchequer. 
One  of  the  most  unpopular  was  the  revival  of  ship  money  ;  a  tax 
often  imposed  in  times  of  national  danger,  such  as  the  Spanish 


JOHN  HAMPDEN'S  HOUSE,  BUCKINGHAMSHIBK. 

invasion,  and  claimed  now  on  the  ground  that  a  fleet  was  necessary 
to  guard  the  coasts  from  pirates.  But  whereas  in  former  times  the 
tax  was  a  temporary  expedient,  and  furnished  chiefly  by  the  seaport 
towns  in  the  shape  of  ships  fully  equipped  for  service,  Weston  made 
it  permanent ;  and  claimed  money  equivalents  from  landed  proprietors 
in  every  county  upon  a  systematic  basis.  Many  murmured  at  the 
imposition  and  some  deliberately  refused  to  pay,  among  them  being 
a  Buckinghamshire  squire  named  John  llampden.  A  lawsuit  was 
entered  against  him  in  the  king's  name  before  twelve  judges  in  the 
Court  of  Exchequer.  Five  judges  agreed  with  Hampden's  counsel 
that  the  king  could  not  impose  ship  money  as  a  icgular  tax  without 
the  consent  of  Parliament  ;  but  the  other  seven  decided  that  acts 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY.  127 

of  Parliament  could  not  bind  the  king  as  to  when  and  how  taxes 
should  be  raised  to  meet  the  necessities  of  state  and  therefore 
Harnpden  lost  the  day.  Notwithstanding  the  nation  felt  that  his 
interpretation  of  the  law  was  just  and  so  he  became  the  hero  of 
the  hour.  (A.D.  1637.)  Strafford  had  been  made  Viceroy  of  Ireland 
and  Lord  President  of  the  north.  He  wielded  absolute  power  in  the 
king's  name,  and  compelled  obedience  through  fear  ;  caring  nothing 
that  his  tyranny  was  heaping  up  future  retribution  against  himself. 

3.  Land's  Administration.— There  can  be  no  question  as  to 
the  severity  with  which  Laud  proceeded  to  enforce  ecclesiastical 
discipline  after  the  dissolution  of  Parliament,  but  we  must  try  not 
to  misunderstand  the  position  of  affairs.  Laud  had  the  Prayer-book 
and  the  Acts  of  Uniformity  on  his  side  ;  and  most  of  those  to  whom 
he  was  opposed  wished  to  ignore  the  one  and  alter  the  other.  It 
was  not  a  question  of  toleration,  but  a  question  as  to  which  side  of 
religious  opinion  should  hare  the  right  and  power  of  compelling 
uniformity.  Each  party  believed  that  its  existence  depended  upon 
the  repression  of  the  other  ;  and  Laud  worked  resolutely  from  a  high 
sense  of  duty  when  he  set  himself  to  purge  the  historical  Christianity 
of  England  from  the  stern  and  cold  Puritanism  that  had  been 
introduced  from  foreign  reformed  Churches,  and  allowed  to  run  riot 
under  Archbishops  Grindal  and  Abbott.  From  the  beginning  to  the 
end  of  his  career  Laud  never  wavered.  The  principles  he  enunciated 
at  Oxford  he  carried  into  practice  at  Gloucester,  St.  David's,  Bath 
and  Wells,  and  London  ;  and  now  that  he  had  unlimited  powers 
accorded  to  him  by  the  king,  and  the  opportunity  of  enforcing 
discipline  by  means  of  the  High  Commission  Conn  and  punishing 
offenders  in  the  Court  of  the  Star  Chamber,  he  used  his  great  power 
without  a  thought  of  consequences ;  although  he  was  sensible  that 
failure  meant  death.  This  much  should  be  said  in  favour  of  \Vent- 
worth  and  of  Laud:  that  they  were  ^.c.gether  careless  of  popularity, 
and  never  wavered  in  their  determination  to  do  what  they  felt  to  be 
just  and  right  when  persons  of  high  social  position  were  charged 
before  them.  In  after  days  when  called  to  account  for  his  adminis- 
tration Laud  said,  "  I  laboured  nothing  more  than  that  the  external 
public  woiship  of  God — too  much  slighted  in  most  parts  of  this 
kingdom — might  be  preserved,  and  that  with  as  much  decency  and 
uniformity  as  might  be  ;  being  still  of  opinion  that  unity  cannot 
long  continue  in  the  Church,  when  uniformity  is  shut  out  at  the 
church  door.1'  It  is  a  great  mistake  to  suppose  that  Laud  desired  to 
introduce  novel  ceremonies ;  and  he  never  went  beyond  the  rubrics, 
canons,  and  statute-law  of  England,  as  laid  down  in  the  courts  of 
his  day,  when  striving  to  set  his  dioceses  in  order,  and  to  regulate 
his  province  after  he  became  primate  in  succession  to  Abbott.  (A.D. 
1633.)  But  it  is  possible  to  strain  the  law  harshly  :  and  this  un- 
doubtedly Laud  did  by  imposing  the  severest  penalties  allowed  in 


128 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


an  unmerciful  age ;  as  when  a  Mr.  Sheffield  was  fined  £500  for 
breaking  a  stained  glass  window  in  a  church  near  Salisbury.  A 
rigid  censorship  of  the  press  was  carried  on,  and  exaggerated 
punishments  were  meted  out  to  those  who  ventured  to  publish  any 
books  or  pamphlets  against  the  Church  or  the  king  ;  as  when  in  1630 
Dr.  Alexander  LcigJiton  was  flogged  and  earcropped  for  libeling  the 
queen  and  attacking  the  bishops  in  a  book  against  prelacy.  The 
Book  of  Sports1  which  King  James  had  issued  in  1618,  to  license 
certain  games  on  Sundays  and  Holy-days  after  service  time,  had 
been  made  the  basis  of  a  furious  attack  by  the  Puritans ;  and  the 
Chief  Justice  Richardson,  in  his  assize  circuit  in  Somersetshire  in 


'     THE   STAK   CHAMBER. 

1  It  should  not  be  thought  that  this  Book  of  Sports  introduced  Sabbath  breaking. 
In  reality  it  restricted  it.  All  through  Elizabeth's  reign  bull-buiting  and  bear-baiting 
took  place  on  Sunday  afternoons,  and  the  introduction  of  healthful  recreation  less 
cruel  and  barbaric  was  a  distiuct  gain  to  morality.  At  the  same  time  it  allowed 
many  sports  that  would  not  be  permitted  now.  The  Church  of  England  in  our  own 
day  has  taken  up  the  subject  of  Lord's  Day  Observance  in  a  very  different  spirit. 
Against  the  pernicious  customs  of  modern  times  she  has  resolutely  set  her  face  ;  as 
appears  by  the  following  utterance  of  the  Lambeth  Conference  of  1888—"  The  due 
observance  of  Sunday  as  a  day  of  rest,  of  worship,  and  of  religious  teaching,  has  a 
direct  bearing  on  the  moral  well-being  of  the  Christian  community.  We  have 
observed  of  late  a  growing  laxity  which  threatens  to  impair  its  sacred  character. 
We  strongly  deprecate  this  tendency.  We  call  upon  the  leisurely  classes  not  selfishly 
to  withdraw  from  others  the  opportunities  of  rest  and  religion.  We  call  upon 
master  and  eirployer  jealously  to  guard  the  privileges  of  the  servant  and  the  work- 
man. In  'the  Lord's  Day'  we  have  a  priceless  heritage.  Whoever  misuses  it 
incur*  a  terrible  responsibility." 


ENGLISH   CHURCH    HISTORY.  129 

1633,  had  prohibited  their  continuance  ;  and  even  went  so  far  as  to 
command  the  clergy  to  announce  his  prohibit  ion  during  service  time  ; 
a  piece  of  interference  with  ecclesiastical  affairs  that  brought  upon 
him  such  a  stern  reproof  from  the  archbishop  that  he  exclaimed,  as 
he  left  the  council  chamber  whither  he  had  been  summoned,  "  I  have 
almost  been  choked  with  a  pair  of  lawn  sleeves."  The  outcome  of 
this  was  an  official  republication  of  the  Book  of  Sports  which  the 
clergy  were  imperatively  commanded  to  make  known  to  their 
assembled  congregations.  The  object  of  the  book  was  to  promote 
healthy  and  manly  exercises  for  the  lower  classes  at  times  when 
enforced  idleness  would  have  driven  them  into  the  ale  houses  ;  but 
to  many  of  the  Puntan  clergy  and  laity  it  seemed  to  be  a  direct 
incentive  to  breaches  of  the  fourth  commandment.  Some  clergy 
refused  to  publish  the  order  in  churcL  and  were  deprived  for  dis- 
obedience. The  sturdiest  Puritan  of  that  age  was  a  lawyer  named 
Pri/nnc,  who  wrote  mauy  books  to  satirise  the  fashionable  levities  of 
his  time  ;  notably  a  book  called  H>»trii>ma#tix  or  '  Scourge  of  Stage 
Players '  in  which  he  not  only  protested  against  the  questionable 
dramas  of  the  day,  but  abused  the  bishops  and  libelled  the 
queen.  Other  men  followed  his  example  in  writing  and  printing 
scurrilous  libels  against  the  government  and  the  Church,  as  did  a 
Puritan  clergyman  named  Burton  and  a  medical  man  called 
Ba*t trick.  I  hey  were  brought  before  the  Star  Chamber  Court  and 
each  sentenced  to  pay  £5;000  fine,  to  stand  in  the  public  pillory  and 
have  their  ears  cut  off.  and  then  incarcerated  for  life  in  distant 
prisons.  It  is  unfair  to  charge  Laud  with  the  chief  responsibility  of  this 
cruelty.  Mutilation  was  not  considered  an  excessive  punishment  in 
an  age  when  men  were  hanged  for  stealing  a  sheep ;  and  Laud's 
position  as  a  judge  in  the  St:ir  Chamber  Court,  which  he  shared 
with  others,  did  not  give  him  the  right  to  create  laws  and  penalties, 
but  only  the  right  to  administer  existing  law  ;  and  there  is  no  reason 
to  suppose  he  was  at  all  vindictive  to  individuals  or  cruel  by  nature 
because  of  his  stern  disciplinary  measures.  The  more  favourable 
side  of  his  administration  in  England  may  be  summed  up  thus : 
he  endeavoured  to  enforce  the  uniform  use  of  the  surplice  in  the 
church  services,  the  restoration  of  the  '  Communion  Tables '  to  their 
original  position  at  the  east  end  of  the  churches,  the  attendance  at 
service  of  parishioners  at  loast  once  every  Sunday,  and  the  suppres- 
sion of  the  Calvinistic  lectureships  which  had  been  set  up  in  oppo- 
sition to  the  proper  parochial  ministry.  This  was  done  by  means 
of  a  general  visitation  of  his  province  A.D.  1633-36.  The  result 
was  orderly  uniformity  where  chaos  had  reigned  before,  but  it  was 
only  an  outward  conformity  prompted  by  fear  of  consequences. 

4.  The  Scotch  Liturgy.— Laud  had  often  been  disturbed  by 
the  thought  that  in  Scotland  no  attention  was  being  paid  to  Catholic 
antiquity  or  uniformity  in  public  worship.  He  had  accompanied 


130 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


James  I.  to  Scotland  in  1620  and  Charles  I.  in  1633.  On  the  first 
occasion  he  had  desired  to  impose  the  English  Liturgy  upon  the  half 
Episcopal,  half  Presbyterian  Kirk,  but  James  had  restrained  his 
zeal.  Charles  was  more  amenable  to  Laud's  influence,  and  knew 
very  little  of  the  Scottish  character.  It  was  therefore  arranged  that 
a  Service-book  should  be  compiled  with  the  assistance  of  the  Scotch 
divines.  When  published  it  was  found  to  be  very  similar  to  the 
English  Prayer-book,  but  different  in  several  important  points  ;  the 
variations  being  caused  by  a  desire  to  incorporate  some  parts  of  the 
ancient  Greek  Liturgy,  so  as  to  make  the  book  more  approximate  to 
the  doctrines  of  the  Universal  Church  before  the  disunion  of  East 
and  West.  Laud  would  have  preferred  an 
uniform  use  of  the  English  Book  pure  and 
simple  throughout  the  three  kingdoms ; 
but  he  was  overruled.  Many  Scotchmen 
objected  to  all  forms  of  prayer,  and  busily 
spread  abroad  many  inaccurate  reports  of 
Laud's  intentions.  The  introduction  of  the 
Service  Book  was  most  unwisely  preceded 
by  the  enforcement  of  the  English  canon- 
law  without  the  concurrence  of  the  Scottish 
clergy.  An  adverse  public  opinion  had 
therefore  condemned  the  use  of  the  Prayer- 
book  before  its  publication  and  quite 
from  its  merits  :  indeed  in  absolute 
norance  of  its  con- 
tents. A  rumour  was 
persistently  circu- 
lated that  the  Mass 
was  to  be  introduced 
at  the  bidding  of  an 
English  archbishop 
who  had  sold  himself 
to  the  pope  and  the 
devil  ;  whereas  the 
old  objections  to  the 
Mass  were  to  the 
Communion  Service 
being  in  a  foreign 
tongue  and  to  the 
adoration  of  the  ele- 
ments, neither  of 
which  objections 
could  be  truthfully 
alleged  against  the 
new  Scotch  Liturgy.  PT  GILES'S,  EDIXBUKCH,  BEFORE  RKSTORATION. 
Without  attempting  many  way  to  disprove  the  rumours,  and  without 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  131 

paying  any  attention  whatever  to  public  opinion,  Laud  went  straight 
forward  in  the  course  he  felt  to  be  right;  and  on  the  sole  authority  of  the 
king  and  bishops,  without  the  assent  of  the  Scottish  Parliament  or  of 
the  General  Assembly  of  the  Kirk,  and  without  making  any  provision 
to  maint  lin  order  in  case  of  organized  disturbance,  the  new  book  was 
ordered  to  be  used  in  every  parish  throughout  Scotland  on  and  after 
Easter-Day.  1637.  At  the  last  moment  its  use  was  postponed  until 
July,  and  on  the  23rd  of  that  month  (the  Seventh  Sunday  after 
Trinity)  it  was  used  for  the  first  time  in  the  Cathedral  of  St.  Giles's, 
Edinburgh,  in  the  presence  of  the  Scotch  bishops.  A  wild  mob  had 
gathered  within  and  without  the  church  at  the  time  of  morning 
service  ;  but  the  dean,  who  read  prayers,  had  hardly  reached  the 
collect  for  the  day  when  an  old  market  woman  named  Jen  ny  Geddes 
flung  the  stool  on  which  she  had  been  sitting  at  his  head.  This  was 
the  signal  for  a  riot.  The  windows  of  the  church  were  smashed,  and 
the  clergy  maltreated  ;  the  Bishop  of  Edinburgh  hardly  escaping 
with  his  life.  This  was  but  the  prelude  to  a  general  resistance 
throughout  Scotland,  and  not  until  it  was  too  late  was  any  attempt 
at  conciliation  made  by  Charles  aud  Laud.  Numerous  petitions 
were  forwarded  to  the  king  and  council  against  the  Prayer-book  and 
the  canons,  which  received  no  attention  ;  till  at  last  the  Scotch 
resolved  to  take  the  law  in  their  own  hands,  and  do  away  with 
Service-book,  bishops,  and  all  ;  and  revert  to  the  Presbyterian  system 
pure  and  simple,  which  John  Knox  had  introduced. 

5.  "War  with.  Scotland.— On  the  1st  March,  1633,  the  National 
Covenant  drawn  up  in  1580  against  Rome  was  revived,  and  subscribed 
by  nineteen-t\ventieths  of  the  Scottish  people;  not  because  every  one 
was  stupid  enough  to  suppose  that  the  bishops  were  Romanists  and 
the  Prayer-book  the  Mass,  but  because  they  felt  that  in  impo*ing 
the  liturgy  upon  the  Scotch  without  the  consent  of  their  Parliament 
the  king  had  disregarded  their  ancient  rights  and  liberties.  The 
Scotch  now  insisted  upon  subscription  to  the  Solemn  League  and 
•itint  as  the  only  basis  of  common  intercourse  with  one  another 
or  with  England  ;  and  appealed  to  arms  in  support  of  their  resolu- 
tion. The  General  Assembly  of  Scotland,  in  which  the  Presbyterian 
ministers  outnumbered  the  lay  representatives  in  the  proportion  of 
H4  to  96,  then  assumed  the  direction  of  affairs  ;  not  with  the  view 
of  obtaining  religious  liberty,  but  in  order  that  absolute  conformity 
to  Presbyterianism,  under  penalties,  should  be  enforced  upon  all 
Scotchmen.  Civil  war  was  unavoidable,  and  both  sides  prepared  for 
the  contest  ;  but  while  the  Scotch  readily  offered  their  money  and 
persons  for  their  cause,  and  did  not  disdain  'to  accept  pecuniary  aid 
from  the  French,  the  English  soldiers  were  half-hearted  and  ill 
provisioned.  Charles  I.  was  compelled  to  make  peace  upon  the  first 
opportunity,  and  allow  the  Scots  to  regulate  their  own  ecclesiastical 
affairs  by  a  new  G*eneral  Assembly  in  concurrence  with  the  Scottish 


132  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

Parliament.  But  Charles  soon  became  dissatisfied  with  the  Scotch 
deliberations,  because  they  only  confirmed  and  enforced  the 
covenant ;  so  Strafford  was  sent  for  from  Ireland,  where  he  had 
succeeded  in  compelling  an  obedience  to  English  rule,  that  he  might 
help  to  reduce  the  Scotch  to  order.  Strafford  advised  that  the 
English  Parliament  should  again  be  called  together,  hoping  that  its 
loyalty  would  be  aroused  to  the  extent  of  provisioning  a  new  army 
to  fight  the  Scots.  But  when  the  new  Parliament  met  (April  1640) 
it  declined  to  consider  anything  until  its  own  grievances  were 
redressed,  and  the  war  with  Scotland  abandoned.  The  king  at  once 
dissolved  it.  Convocation  had  always  sat  concurrently  with  Parlia- 
ment and  been  dissolved  at  the  same  time.  But  on  that  occasion 
Convocation  continued  to  sit  after  Parliament  was  dissolved,  in  order 
that  the  clergy,  who  had  all  along  supported  the  Crown  policy,  might 
vote  their  more  willing  subsidies  in  the  shape  of  a  '  benevolence '  for 
the  king's  necessity.  This  was  felt  to  be  an  illegal  proceeding, 
although  the  judges  pronounced  in  its  favour  ;  so  a  new  writ  was 
issued  authorizing  the  members  to  sit  and  act  during  the  king's 
pleasure  under  the  name  of  a  Synod.  This  assembly  proceeded  to 
make  new  canons  to  enforce  the  policy  of  Laud,  one  of  which  was  to 
prevent  Scotch  disaffection  from  spreading  into  England — by  im- 
posing the  following  oath  upon  the  clergy  : — 

"  I ,  do  swear  that  I  approve  the  doctrine  and  discipline  or  government 

established  in  the  Church  of  England,  as  containing  all  things  necessary  to  salva- 
tion, and  that  I  will  not  endeavour  by  myself  or  aiiy  other,  directly  or  indirectly,  to 
bring  in  any  popish  doctrine  contrary  to  that  which  is  so  established  ;  nor  will  I 
ever  give  my  consent  to  alter  the  government  of  this  Church  by  archbishops 
bishops,  deans,  and  archdeacons,  et  cetera,  as  it  now  stands  established." 

Popular  opinion  at  once  cried  out  against  the  et  cetera  clause, 
as  if  it  imposed  an  oath  requiring  approval  of  something  left  blank 
and  undefined  ;  whereas  the  objectionable  word  meant  nothing,  being 
only  a  careless  error.  The  oath  was  not  enforced,  but  it  furnished 
occasion  for  the  Puritan  politicians  to  stir  up  enmity  against  the 
Church  ;  and  when  the  Scotch  defeated  the  royal  forces  at  Newburn- 
on-Tyne,  August  28,  1610,  discontent  against  the  Government  and 
Church  had  reached  its  highest  pitch.  Charles  then  called  a  council 
of  peers  to  advise  him  what  to  do  ;  but  as  they  declined  to  act  apart 
from  the  House  of  Commons,  the  unhappy  king  was  obliged  to  issue 
writs  for  a  general  election. 

6.  The  Long  Parliament. — On  November  3,  1640,  the  new 
legislative  body  came  together  and  was  found  to  contain  a  large 
majority  of  members  opposed  to  the  policy  of  the  Government  and 
the  English  Episcopate.  They  knew  that  the  king's  financial  neces- 
sities were  urgent,  and  they  knew  also  that  by  declining  to  vote 
subsidies  until  their  own  privileges  were  secured,  they  stood  a  better 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  133 

chance  of  obtaining  the  king's  consent.  Their  leader  was  John  Pym  ; 
and  their  first  business  was  to  impeach  Lord  Strafford  for  his 
civil  government,  and  obtain  his  committal  to  the  Tower.  Their 
second  business  was  to  release  the  Puritan  libellers — Prynne.  Burton, 
Leighton.  Bastwick  and  others — from  prison  ;  and  compensate  them 
handsomely  out  of  the  estates  of  the  prelates  who  had  been  their 
judges.  Then  Dr.  Cosin  of  Durham  was  impeached  before  the  Lords 
for  superstitious  practices,  but  was  acquitted.  The  Et  cetera  Oath 
and  other  canons  of  the  recent  synod  were  declared  illegal.  On 
November  10  petitions  began  to  roll  in  against  Archbishop  Laud,  and 
on  December  18  the  Commons  accused  him  before  the  Lords  of  high 
treason.  He  was  then  arrested  and  shortly  after  sent  to  the  Tower. 
Other  bishops  who  had  been  strict  in  their  discipline  were  accused  in 
like  manner,  though  permitted  to  be  at  large  under  heavy  bail. 
Parliament  then  issued  a  commission  to  deface  and  demolish  all 
monuments,  images,  altars,  and  painted  windows  in  the  churches  ; 
and  appointed  a  committee  of  religion  to  consider  objections  to  the 
Church's  system  of  government  and  worship.  The  next  event 
(March,  1641)  was  the  trial  of  Strafford  in  the  House  of  Lords  ;  but 
as  it  was  difficult  to  prove  charges  of  treason  against  him  by  the 
ordinary  legal  processes,  a  special  Act  of  Parliament,  called  a  Bill  of 
Attainder,  was  passed  by  the  Commons  against  him,  by  which 
sentence  of  death  could  be  carried  out  without  further  trouble  (April 
21).  The  House  of  Lords  gave  a  reluctant  assent  to  the  measure 
(May  7),  but  it  still  required  the  king's  assent..  It  was  a  hard  trial 
for  Charles  to  be  called  upon  to  consent  to  the  summary  execution 
of  an  adviser  whose  ministerial  life  had  been  wholly  spent  in 
faithfully  serving  him,  especially  as  he  had  given  Strafford  a  solemn 
promise  of  protection  ;  but  Parliament  was  clamorous  for  his  death 
and  Charles  gave  way  to  it  (May  10).  When  Strafford  heard 
that  his  fate  was  sealed  he  exclaimed,  "  Put  not  your  trust  in 
princes."  He  was  beheaded  May  12.  A  pathetic  description  has 
been  left  us  of  Strafford 's  journey  from  the  dungeon  to  the  scaffold. 
He  had  to  pass  the  prison  window  of  his  late  colleague  in  the 
government.  Archbishop  Laud,  so  he  stopped  by  appointment  to 
receive  the  primate's  blessing.  But  Laud  was  unable  to  speak  a 
word  for  sorrow,  and  could  only  bestow  the  desired  benediction  with 
his  outstretched  and  trembling  nands.  Strafford's  death  was  the 
first  important  limitation  of  absolute  monarchy.  The  same  day  that 
Charles  signed  the  Bill  of  Attainder  against  Strafford  he  made  a 
still  more  fatal  concession,  by  giving  his  Assent  to  another 
bill  by  which  it  became  illegal  for  the  legislative  body  to  be 
dissolved  without  its  own  consent.  As  the  Parliament  then  sitting 
withheld  its  consent  for  many  years  it  obtained  the  significant  name 
of  the  Long  Parliament.  Thus  fortified  the  House  of  Commons 
proceeded  to  revenge  itself  upon  the  Church  of  England  and  the 
king.  By  the  end  of  July  statutes  had  been  passed  abolishing  the 


134  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

Star  Chamber  and  High  Commission  Courts,  and  others  prohibiting 
the  hateful  ship-money  and  the  customs'  duties.  The  Scots  then 
received  an  indemnity  and  the  opposing  armies  were  disbanded. 

7.  Outbreak  of  the  Civil  War. — It  soon  became  apparent 
that  Charles  did  not  intend  to  keep  faith  with  Parliament ;  and 
.  therefore  further  guarantees  were  demanded.  A  Grand  Remons- 
trance was  passed  on  Nov.  22,  consisting  of  206  clauses,  setting  forth 
the  autocratic  and  unwise  proceedings  of  Charles  I.  and  his  advisers 
since  tne  beginning  of  his  reign  ;  and  demanding  safeguards  against 
any  recurrence  thereof.  This  document  was  printed  by  order  of  the 
House  and  scattered  broadcast  over  the  land.  It  was  in  fact  an 
appeal  to  the  people  to  vindicate  the  Parliament,  against  the  king. 
Charles  was  in  the  country  at  the  time,  but  he  immediately  returned 
to  London  and  instructed  the  attorney-general  to  prefer  a  charge  of 
treason  against  five  leaders  in  the  House  of  Commons — Hampden, 
Pym,  Holies,  Haselrig,  and  Strode,  but  this  the  House  would  not 
permit.  The  king  then  went  down  to  the  House  with  a  guard  to 
arrest  them  in  person,  but  a  friendly  messenger  preceded  him,  and 
on  the  king's  arrival  the  members  had  escaped.  London  had  all 
along  favoured  Parliament,  and  now  turned  out  in  arms  to  help  the 
Commons.  The  king  then  went  to  the  provinces  with  the  intention 
of  raising  an  army  to  subdue  his  adversaries  by  force.  The  Commons 
suspecting  his  design  demanded  the  charge  of  all  fortified  towns  and 
cities  and  the  command  of  the  militia  ;  which  the  king  refused  to 
sanction  (March  9, 1642).  It  was  no  longer  a  question  of  constitutional 
government,  but  whether  Parliament  or  the  king  should  rule  abso- 
lutely. The  Commons  had  the  advantage,  and  proceeded  upon  a 
course  in  which  they  themselves  performed  every  unconstitutional 
act  which  they  had  considered  to  be  public  offences  when  performed 
by  the  king  in  council.  On  Aug.  22,  the  king  set  up  his  standard  at 
Nottingham  and  invited  all  who  were  for  Church  and  Realm  to  rally 
round  it.  Thirty-two  peers  and  sixty  members  of  the  House  of  Com- 
mons at  once  responded  ;  and  the  remaining  members  set  up  a  rival 
army,  and  passed  la'ws  without  opposition,  enforcing  new  taxes  on 
people  to  pay  expenses.  The  history  of  the  Civil  War  will  not  be 
looked  for  in  these  pages,  but  it  should  not  be  forgotten  that  the 
struggle  was  quite  as  much  on  behalf  of  the  ancient  national  religion 
against  a  novel  puritanism  as  it  was  on  behalf  of  absolute  monarchy 
against  parliamentary  government.  The  civil  and  religious  questions 
were  not  separated  then.  Not  a  single  remonstrance  or  proposition 
was  made  by  Parliament  to  the  king  unless  the  two  questions  were 
connected.  The  songs  of  the  Cavaliers,  as  the  partisans  of  Charles 
were  called,  invariably  combined  the  causes.  We  give  a  specimen: — 
'  For  the  rights  of  fair  England  his  broadsword  he  draws, 
Her  king  is  his  leader,  her  Church  is  his  cause, 
His  watchword  is  honour,  his  pay  is  renown, 
God  strike  with  the  gallant  that  strikes  for  the  Crown.' 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY.  135 

And  the  Parliamentarians  never  essayed  a  battle  without  fortifying 
themselves  with  copious  extracts  from  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures 
as  to  the  necessity  of  smiting  the  '  Philistines  '  hip  and  thigh,  etc. 
Moreover  they  speedily  entered  into  an  alliance  with  the  Scotch 
(Sept.  25.  16i3)  by  which  they  bound  themselves  to  carry  out  the 
Solemn  League  and  Covenant  to  extirpate  '  popery '  and  '  prelacy.' 
Here  are  some  of  its  provisions  : — 

"  That  we  shall  sincerely  really  and  constantly  through  the  grace  of  God 
....  endeavour  to  bring  the  Churches  of  God  in  the  three  kingdoms  to  the 
nearest  conjunction  and  uniformity  in  religion,  confession  of  faith,  form  of  Church 
government,  directory  for  worship  and  catechising.  (2)  That  we  shall  in  like  manner 
endeavour  the  extirpation  of  ....  Church  government  by  archbishops, 
bishops  ....  and  all  other  ecclesiastical  officers  depending  on  their  hierarchy. 
(X)  We  shall,  with  the  same  sincerity  .  .  .  .endeavour  ....  to  preserve  the 
rights  and  privileges  of  the  i  arliaments  and  the  liberties  of  the  kingdoms  ;  and  to 
preserve  and  defend  the  king's  majesty's  person  and  authority  ....  that  the 
world  may  bear  witness  with  our  consciences  of  our  loyalty." 

In  other  words  Parliament  resolved  to  destroy  the  ancient  Church 
of  England  and  enforce  conformity  to  Presbyterian  methods,  while 
their  open  war  with  the  king  is  a  sufficient  comment  upon  their  pro- 
fessions of  loyalty.  Henceforth  there  was  a  '•  life  or  death  "  struggle 
between  Calvinism  and  the  historic  Church  of  the  nation. 


8.  The  Long  Parliament  and  the  Clergy.— We  may  fairly 
interrupt  the  chronological  sequence  at  this  stage  to  consider  some 
of  the  troubles  the  clergy  had  to  suffer  at  the  hands  of  the  Puritans. 
In  December,  16-10,  the  Long  Parliament  appointed  a  special  com- 
mittee to  invite  and  deal  with  any  complaints  its  fiiends  might  care 
to  make  against  them,  and  to  deprive  all  such  incumbents  as  the 
committee  should  judge  to  be  '  gcanilalon*  miniiten.'  The  com- 
mittee were  soon  exceedingly  busy  with  numerous  complaints  and 
the  accused  persons  were  summoned  before  it  from  all  parts  of  the 
country,  their  parishes  being  deprived  of  their  ministrations  while 
they  waited  their  turn  to  be  examined.  The  prejudiced  and  partisan 
statements  of  the  informers  were  accepted  readily  ;  but  no  rebutting 
evidence  was  allowed,  or  counter  petitions  and  testimonials  of 
character  admitted.  When  we  come  to  examine  the  charges  made 
they  appear  to  have  consisted  chiefly  of  offences  against  the  Presby- 
terian idea  of  public  worship ;  notwithstanding  that  they  might 
have  been  in  perfect  accordance  with  the  rubrics  and  canon  law. 
There  is  a  little  church  at  Bemerton  near  Salisbury  where  for  a 
short  season  the  saintly  priest  George  Herbert  had  ministered.  He 
died  just  before  Laud  was  elevated  to  the  primacy,  but  he  left 
behind  some  writimgs  in  prose  and  verse,  which  help  us  to  form 
some  idea  of  the  high  standard  set  up,  and  in  many  cases  followed 
by  the  clergy  in  public  and  private.  None  who  now  read  his 


136 


ILLUSTRATED   NOTES   ON 


poems  upon  discipline  and  ecclesiastical  symbolism  would  think 
that  those  who  followed  in  his  footsteps  deserved  reproof.  For 
all  who  objected  to  uniform  rules  in  religious  matters  he  wrote  : 

Thou  livest  by  rule !  who  doth  not  so  but  man  ? 

Houses  are  built  by  rule,  and  commonwealths. 

Entice  the  trusty  sun,  if  that  you  can, 

From  his  ecliptic  line :  beckon  the  sky ! 

Who  lives  by  rule  then,  keeps  good  company. 


GEORGE'  HERBERT'S  CHURCH,  BEMKRTON. 

and   his   idea  of  the  middle  position  between  Papal  and    Puritan 
extremes  occupied  by  the  National  Church  is  thus  expressed  :  — 


She  on  the  hills,1  which  wantonly 
Allui-eth  all  in  hope  to  be 

By  her  preferred, 

Hath  kissed  so  long  her  painted  shrines, 
That  e'en  her  face  by  kissing  shines, 

For  her  reward. 


She  in  the  valley'2  is  so  shy 

Of  dressing,  that  her  hair  doth  lie 

About  her  ears  : 

While  she  avoids  her  neighbour's  pride 
She  wholly  goes  on  th'  other  side, 
And  nothing  wears. 


But,  dearest  Mother  8   (what  those  miss), 

The  mean  thy  praise  and  glory  is, 

And  long  may  be  1 


The  Church  of  Home.        8   The  British  Church.        2  The  Puritan  Faith. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH  HISTORY.  137 

The  outward  forms  of  worship  had  for  him  high  spiritual  lessons. 
Everything  of  which  the  sanctuary  itself  was  composed — the  very 
lock  and  key.  the  porch,  the  windows,  the  music,  the  monuments, 
even  to  the  tesselated  pavement  of  the  church — all  meant  something. 

'  Mark  you  the  floor  ?  that  square  and  speckled  stone 
Which  looks  so  firm  and  strong, 

1=  Patience  ; 

And  the  other  black  and  grave,  wherewith  each  one 
Is  checkered  all  along, 

Humility. 

The  gentle  rising,  which  on  either  hand 
Leads  to  the  choir  above, 

Is  Confidence. 

But  the  sweet  cement,  which  in  one  sure  band 
Ties  the  whole  frame,  is  Love 

And  Charity.' 

But  it  was  just  that  reverence  for  symbolism,  appealing  to  the  heart 
through  the  outward  senses,  which  the  Puritan  mind  of  the  Long 
Parliament  could  not  abide.  Those  who  put  a  literal  interpretation 
upon  the  precept  of  St.  Paul  that  "  at  the  name  of  Jesus  every 
knee  shall  bow  "  were  to  them  the  greatest  criminals,  for  whom  no 
punishment  was  too  excessive.  There  were  however  many  members 
who  declined  to  go  to  such  outrageous  lengths.  Sir  Edicard  Dering, 
e.g.,  by  no  means  a  favourer  of  the  Church  until  the  violence  of  his 
colleagues  drove  him  to  sympathise  with  her,  thus  addressed  the 
Speaker  of  the  House  when  the  draft  instructions  for  the  committee 
of  enquiry  respecting  'scandalous'  ministers  were  discussed. 

"  And  must  I,  Sir,  hereafter  do  no  exterior  reverence — none  at  all— to  God  my 
Saviour,  at  the  mention  of  his  saving  name  Jesus  ?  Why  Sir,  not  to  do  it,—  to 
omit  it,  and  to  leave  it  undone,  it  is  questionable,  it  is  controvertible ;  it  is  at  least  a 
moot  point  in  divinity.  But  to  deny  it,— to  forbid  it  to  be  done !— take  heed,  Sir, 
God  will  never  own  you  if  you  forbid  his  honour.  Truly,  Sir,  it  horrors  me  to 
think  of  this.  For  my  part,  I  do  humbly  ask  pardon  of  this  House,  and  thereupon 
I  take  leave  and  liberty  to  give  yon  my  resolute  resolution.  I  may,  I  must,  I  will 
do  bodily  reverence  unto  my  Saviour  ;  and  that  upon  occasion  taken  at  the  mention 
of  his  saving  name  Jesus.  And  if  I  should  do  it  also  as  oft  as  the  name  of  God,  or 
Jehovah,  or  Christ,  is  named  in  our  solemn  devotions,  I  do  not  know  any  argument 
in  divinity  to  control  me  ....  In  a  word,  certainly,  Sir,  I  shall  never  obey 
your  order  so  long  as  I  have  a  head  to  lift  up  to  Heaven — so  long  as  I  have  an  eye  to 
lift  up  to  Heaven !  For  these  are  corporal  bowings,  and  my  Saviour  shall  have  them 
at  his  name  Ji.- 

This  was  a  privileged  utterance  in  parliamentary  debate  ;  but  many 
hundreds  of  clergy  who  endeavoured  in  like  manner  to  carry  out 
the  rubrics  and  obey  the  canon  law  were  expelled  from  "their 
benefices  as  '  malignant '  clergy,  their  places  being  filled  by  Puritan 


138  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES   ON 

preachers,  many  of  whom  were  illiterate  and  unordained  men.  After 
the  Parliament  had  accepted  the  Covenant  all  the  clergy  were  called 
upon  to  sign  it ;  "  such  ministers  as  refused  being  reported  to  Parlia- 
ment as  malignants.  and  proceeded  against  accordingly.  No  fewer 
than  seven  thousand  clergymen  were  upon  this  ground  rejected  from 
their  livings  ;  so  faithful  were  the  great  body  of  the  clergy  in  the 
worst  of  times.  The  extent  of  private  misery  and  ruin,  which  this 
occasioned,  aggravated  in  no  slight  degree  the  calamities  of  civil 
war.  It  was  not  till  some  years  had  elapsed  that  a  fifth  part  of  the 
income  was  ordered  to  be  paid  to  the  wives  and  children  of  the 
sequestered  ministers  :  and  then  the  order  had  no  retrospective  effect  ; 
in  most  instances  it  was  disregarded,  ....  and  even  had  it  been 
scrupulously  paid,  few  were  the  cases  wherein  such  a  provision 
could  have  preserved  the  injured  parties  from  utter  want."  (Suuthey.') 

9.  The  Long  Parliament  and  the  Bishops.— One  reason 
why  no  mercy  was  shown  to  the  clergy  was  that  they  were  but  parts 
of  a  system  that  withstood  the  advance  of  Puritanism.  They  were 
members  of  an  Episcopal  Church,  and  Episcopacy  was  hateful  to  the 
majority  of  the  Long  Parliament ;  although  there  were  a  few 
members  in  favour  of  it,  and  many  who  would  have  been  satisfied 
with  a  limitation  of  its  powers.  So  early  as  May  1,  1641,  a  bill 
passed  the  Commons  to  prohibit  bishops  from  dealing  with  temporal 
matters  ;  the  object  being  to  exclude  them  from  the  House  of  Lords 
and  Privy  Council  lest  their  opposition  should  prevent  Puritan 
measures  passing.  But  the  House  of  Lords  rejected  the  bill  by  a 
large  majority.  The  Commons  retorted  by  introducing  the  famous 
Root  and  liraucli  Bill  for  the  entire  abolition  of  Episcopacy  and  its 
dependent  hierarchy  as  mentioned  in  the  '  Et  cetera  '  Oath.  So  drastic 
a  measure  could  not  be  expected  to  pass  without  much  opposition.  It 
had  been  introduced  by  Sir  E.  Tering,  but  during  the  debate  upon  the 
second  reading  he  said  that  he  had  done  so  without  due  consideration 
of  its  purport,  and  that  he  was  convinced  that  bishops,  if  not  of 
apostolical  institution  were  yet  of  apostolical  permission.  ;'Forof 
and  in  apostolical  times,  all  stories,  all  fathers,  all  ages  have  agreed 
that  such  bishops  there  were."  In  consequence  of  the  opposition  the 
bill  was  abandoned  until  after  many  members  had  withdrawn  from 
the  house  to  follow  their  king.  The  Grand  Remonstrance  contained 
so  many  accusations  against  Episcopacy  that  after  it  was  published 
a  burst  of  popular  indignation  was  raised  against  the  order.  Even 

"  The  oyster-women  lock'tl  their  fish  up, 
And  trudged  away  to  cry  '  No  Bishop  1 '  " 

Armed  mobs  surrounded  the  House  of  Lords  and  so  persistently 
threatened  the  prelates  that  they  were  fain  to  escape  through  bye- 
ways,  and  disguised  for  fear  of  their  lives.  The  bishops  then  drew 
up  and  signed  a  protest  against  their  ill-treatment  ;  wherein  they 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY.  139 

explained  their  ancient  right  to  legislate  as  an  estate  of  the  realm 
a  body  whose  order  had  taken  part  in  the  government  of  the  land 
centuries  before  the  House  of  Commons  existed,  and  declared  all 
measures  passed  by  the  Peers  in  their  absence  would  be  illegal. 
When  the  Commons  received  the  protest  they  at  once  impeached 
a  number  of  the  bishops  for  treason  and  sent  them  to  the  Tower 
(December,  1641).  In  their  absence  it  was  easy  enough  to  pass  a  bill 
excluding  them  from  the  House  of  Lords  (January,  1642)  ;  but  it 
was  not  until  the  Royalists  left  the  Parliament  that  the  Commons 
ventured  to  reintrodnce  the  '  Root  and  Branch '  Bill.  They  did  so, 
however,  on  September  1,  1642,  in  order  to  provide  a  basis  for 
negotiations  with  the  Scotch  ;  who  had  refused  to  aid  the  Parliament 
against  the  king  unless  Presbyterianism  was  enforced  upon  the  three 
kingdoms  as  the  price  of  their  assistance.  It  passed  the  House  of 
Lords  in  1643.  None  of  these  measures  were  legal  statutes,  because 
they  did  not  receive  the  Royal  Assent,  nor  was  Parliament  itself 
representative  of  the  nation  at  the  time,  seeing  that  the  Royalist 
minority  was  excluded  from  its  deliberations.  One  of  the  demands 
in  the  Petition  of  Right  (-page  123)  was  that  no  person  should  be 
arrested  and  detained  in  prison  without  a  speedy  trial  ;  but  this  was 
one  of  the  first  rights  of  the  subject  which  the  Long  Parliament 
violated.  Without  trial  it  confined  many  bishops  and  large  numbers 
of  clergy  in  prison  during  its  pleasure  ;  and  also  without  trial 
they  had  kept  the  head  of  the  Anglican  episcopate,  Archbishop 
Laud,  imprisoned  in  a  dungeon  of  the  Tower  nearly  four  years. 

"  Prejudged  by  foes  determined  not  to  spare, 
An  old  weak  man  for  vengeance  thrown  aside," 

Prynne.  who  had  been  cruelly  punished  by  the  Star  Chamber  Court, 
was  very  bitter  against  Laud,  and  was  commissioned  by  the  Com- 
mons to  collect  evidence  against  him.  He  seems  to  have  been 
unsuccessful  until  he  visited  the  primate  in  prison  and  compelled  the 
poor  man  to  surrender  all  his  private  papers  and  diaries;  from  which 
•extracts  were  made  in  order  to  accuse  him.  As  with  Strafford  the 
charges  of  treason  failed,  although  the  trial  dragged  its  weary  length 
along  from  November,  1643,  to  November,  1644.  He  had  previously 
been  ruined  by  the  enormous  fines  imposed  upon  him  as  compensation 
to  Prynne  and  others.  He  bore  all  his  troubles  with  exemplary  patience 
-and  defended  himself  throughout  his  long  trial  with  remarkable 
vigour  and  courage.  He  was  arraigned  upon  fifteen  different  charges 
-of  treason,  with  a  view  of  proving  him  guilty  of  a  conspiracy  to  over- 
throw the  Constitution.  When  these  failed  to  be  substantiated  they 
-charged  him  with  an  attempt  to  introduce  '  popery,'  adducing  in 
proof  that  he  had  received  the  offer  of  a  cardinal's  hat,  that  he  had 
mended  the  stained-glass  window  of  Lambeth  Palace,  and  that  he  had 
.Romish  books  and  missals  in  his  study.  He  was  able  to  shew  that  he 
tad  refused  the  cardinalate  at  a  time  when  there  was  neither  honour 


140  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    ON 

or  profit  in  remaining  true  to  the  national  religion,  while  wealth  and 
ease  awaited  him  if  he  would  renounce  it.  "  It  is  true,  my  lords,"  said 
he,  "  that  I  had  many  missals  ;  but  I  had  more  of  the  Greek  liturgies 
than  the  Roman,  though  I  had  as  many  of  both  as  I  could  get.  I 
would  fain  know  how  we  should  answer  their  errors  if  we  may  not  have 
their  books.  I  had  liturgies,  all  1  could  get,  both  ancient  and  modern. 
I  had  also  the-  Koran  in  divers  copies  ;  if  this  be  an  argument  why  do 
they  not  accuse  me  to  be  a  Turk."  His  accusers  then  argued  that  if 
no  one  act  of  Laud's  could  be  called  high  treason,  yet  in  the  aggre- 
gate they  amounted  to  it.  A  Mr.  Hearne,  who  was  one  of  Laud's 
counsel,  at  once  replied,  "  I  cry  you  mercy  Mr.  Serjeant  ;  I  never 
understood  before  this  time  that  two  Hundred  couple  of  black  rabbits 
would  together  make  one  black  horse."  When  it  was  felt  that  the 
accusations  might  break  down  Parliament  did  the  same  as  they  had 
done  with  Strafford  ;  they  brought  in  a  bill  of  Attainder,  which 
passed  the  Commons  on  the  16th  Nov.  ;  .ut  it  was  not  until  Jan.  4, 
1645,  that  the  Lords  could  be  prevailed  upon  to  give  their  assent 
Six  days  later  he  was  led  out  to  Tower 
Hill  for  execution.  After  an  earnest  dis- 
course to  the  assembled  crowd,  and  a  very 
impressive  prayer  which  he  had  prepared 
for  the  occasion,  he  knelt  beside  the  block 
and  uttered  these  words :  "  Lord,  I  am 
coming  as  fast  as  I  can  ;  Lord  receive  my 
soul  and  have  mercy  upon  me  ;  and  bless  . 
this  land  with  Christian  love  and  charity,6 
for  Jesus  Christ's  sake."  Then  with  one 
blow  of  the  axe  his  head  was  severed  from 
its  body.  So  perished  an  'absolutely  AXE  AND  BLOCK. 
single-minded  man,  who  could  and  did  make  great  mistakes,  but 
who  never  knowingly  chose  the  lower  part.'  ( Wakeman.) 

10.  The  Westminster  Assembly.— The  real  authors  of  this 
judicial  murder  were  the  godly  and  earnest  divines  nominated  by 
the  Parliament  to  advise  it  in  religious  affairs  ;  a  most  intolerant 
assembly  composed  in  part  of  members  of  the  attenuated  Parliament 
and  in  part  of  extreme  puritan  ministers  from  Scotland  and  England 
which  met  in  the  chapel  of  Henry  VII.  at  Westminster.  By  its 
advice  the  Solemn  League  and  Covenant  was  enforced  upon  all 
persons  in  the  country  above  the  age  of  eighteen.  By  its  advice 
the  public  use  of  the  Prayer-book  was  forbidden  under  penal- 
ties the  very  day  that  Laud  was  executed  ;  and  the  Directory 
for  Public  Worship  substituted  for  it.  By  this  means  it  was  made 
an  offence  to  kneel  at  the  reception  of  Holy  Communion,  or  to  use 
any  kind  of  symbolism  in  sacred  things,  such  as  the  ring  in  mar- 
riage ;  and  when  any  person  departed  this  life  the  dead  body  was 
to  be  interred  without  any  kind  of  religious  ceremony,  nor  were  the 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  141 

friends  allowed  to  sing  or  read,  or  pray,  or  kneel,  at  the  grave, 
although  the  civil  pomp  and  pageantry  in  funeral  processions  of 
persons  of  rank  or  condition  were  not  in  any  way  restricted.  Then 
the  holy  and  beautiful  petitions  of  our  liturgy,  though  sanctified  by 
the  devotions  of  Christians  in  every  clime  and  by  every  tongue  for 
fifteen  hundred  years  and  more,  gave  place  to  long  and  tedious 
harangues,  from  illiterate  fanatics,  of  two  and  three  hours'  duration  ; 
and  the  observance  of  great  Church  festivals,  together  with  all  anni- 
versaries, was  strictly  forbidden.  On  Dec.  19.  1644,  a  solemn  ordinance 
of  Parliament  was  passed  by  the  advice  of  the  Westminster  Assembly 
commanding  that  the  hitherto  joyous  anniversary  of  our  Lord's 
nativity  should  be  observed  as  a  day  for  national  fasting  and  humi- 
liation. To  what  lengths  the  Assembly  would  have  gone  had  it 
been  allowed  free  course  it  is  impossible  to  say.  An  inordinately 
long  formula  in  question  and  answer  called  the  Larger  Catechism 
was  drawn  up  as  a  means  of  testing  the  orthodoxy  of  those  who  were 
supposed  to  be  proficient  in  religion  ;  and  a  Shorter  Catechism  was 
compiled,  though  much  longer  than  that  with  which  Churchmen  are 
acquainted,  for  '  those  of  weaker  capacity.'  Owing  to  these  efforts 
Presbyterianism  was  established  as  the  national  religion  of  England 
for  a  time.  But  only  for  a  short  time,  because  the  Parliamentary 
army,  which  had  been  fighting  against  the  Royalists  with  more  or 
less  of  success,  was  by  no  means  disposed  to  allow  religious  affairs  to 
be  settled  without  having  a  voice  in  the  matter.  Most  of  the  original 
volunteers  who  composed  the  Parliamentary  army  were  Presby- 
terians, as  were  the  21.000  men  whom  the  Scotch  brought  over  the 
border  to  help  them  in  January.  1644.  But  a  very  large  proportion  of 
English  Puritans  were  afterwards  associated  with  them  who  objected 
to  any  uniform  Church  government ;  because  they  perceived  that  the 
little  finger  of  the  Westminster  Assembly  would  be  thicker  than  the 
loins  of  episcopacy  had  been  ;  and  would  not  be  satisfied  unless  Parlia- 
ment agreed  to  allow  toleration  for  all  religious  bodies  that  were  not 
governed  by  bishops.  The  longer  the  civil  war  lasted  the  stronger 
this  party  grew,  much  to  the  annoyance  of  the  '  godly  and  learned 
divines '  assembled  at  Westminster.  These  'Independents'  of  the  army 
were  under  the  leadership  of  a  shrewd  Huntingdonshire  gentleman, 
Olircr  CromrrtU;  and  after  his  brilliant  victory  over  Prince  Rupert 
at  the  battle  of  Marston-Moor  (July  2.  1644),  his  party  took  the  lead. 
That  there  was  no  love  lost  between  this  rising  party  and  the  Presby- 
terians may  be  gathered  from  remarks  of  Robtrt'Baillie.&  Scotch 
divine,  who  recorded  the  proceedings  of  the  Westminster  Assembly, 
to  which  he  belonged.  The  'Independents.'  he  writes,  'have  the 
least  zeal  for  the  truth  of  God  of  any  men  we  know.'  And  again, 
'  if  we  carry  not  the  Independents  with  us  there  will  be  ground  laid 
for  a  very  troublesome  schism.'  Whereas  Oliver  Cromwell  con- 
sidered that  all  his  Independent  Ironsides  were  '  earnest  and  godly 
men,'  whose  hearts  were  in  the  cause  of  civil  and  religious  liberty. 


H2 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    0A 


11.  The  'Independent'  Army. — Crom\\ell  detirtd  to  abolish 
monarchy  altogether,  and  when  he  found  that  Parliament  offered  to 
reinstate  the  king  if  Charles  would  agree  to  the  establishment  of 
Presbyterianism  (Jan.  30,  1645)  he  determined  to  carry  his  design 
into  action.  As  the  Presbyterian  generals  had  failed  to  follow  up 
advantages  gained  in  battles,  he  impeached  them  as  traitors  to  the 
cause.  Under  cover  of  a  Self-denying  Ordinance^  which  passed  th< 
Houses  in  April,  1645,  and  forbade  members  of  Parliament  to  hoi- 
commands  in  the  army,  the  Presbyterian  generals  were  allowed  tc 
give  up  their  commissions.  Cromwell  was  himself  a  member,  but  he 
obtained  exemption  from  the  ordinance  and  remodelled  the  army  ; 
his  friend  Sir  T.  Fairfax  being  nominated  General.  At  the  Battle  of 
Nascby  (June  14)  the  Eoyalists  were  utterly  routed  ;  after  which  the 
'  New  Model '  army  had  very  little  difficulty  in  capturing  and  occupy- 
ing the  fortresses  tbat  had  been  held  in  the  king's  name,  The  king 

soon  afterwards  surrendered  himself 
to  the  Scottish  army  at  Newark  (May 
5,  1646)  in  the  hope  of  retrieving  his 
fortunes  by  making  terms  with  the 
Presbyterians.  But  on  receipt  of  en- 
couragement from  the  queen,  who 
was  then  in  France  raising  money 
and  friends,  he  refused  the  terms 
which  Parliament  offered.1  The 
Scotch  then  surrendered  him  to  the  " 
English  Parliament  in  return  for  an 
indemnity  of  £400,OOC  (Jan.  30, 1647) 
and  he  was  lodged  at  Holuiby  House, 
Northamptonshire.  Thinking  that 
the  war  was  practically  over  Parlia- 
ment endeavoured  to  checkmate 
Cromwell  by  reinforcing  the  Self- 
denying  Ordinance  so  as  to  deprive 
and  passing  other  ordinances  to  reduce 
the  army,  deprive  the  soldiers  of  five-sixths  of  their  arrears  of 
pay,  and  compel  all  officers  to  sign  the  Presbyterian  covenant. 
Cromwell  retorted  by  calling  the  army  together  near  Newmarket 
(June  4,  1647),  having  previously  removed  the  king  from  Holmby 
House  by  force,  and  demanding  the  expulsion  from  Parliament 
of  eleven  leaders  of  the  Presbyterian  party  who  had  suggested 
the  obnoxious  ordinances.  They  then  lodged  the  king  at  Hampton 
Court  and  made  liberal  proposals  to  him  ;  on  condition,  among  other 
things,  that  there  should  be  complete  toleration  for  all  religions 

1  Parliament  bad  demanded  (l)That  Presbyterianism  should  continue  to  be  the- 
established  religion  ;  (2)  That  the  militia  officers  should  be  appointed  by  the  Par-  . 
liament ;  (3)  That  war  should  be  carried  on  against  the  Irish  who  had  massacred  ! 
the  Puritans  of  Ulster  after  Stafford's  recall. 


him 


A   PURITAN  SOLDIEB. 
of    his   command 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY. 


143 


except  that  of  the  Romanists.  Those  might  be  governed  by  bishops 
who  chose,  but  the  old  National  Church  was  not  to  be  restored. 
Charles  I.  refused  these  terms  and  managed  to  escape  from  his  guards. 
He  took  refuge  at  Carisbrook  Castle  in  the  Isle  of  Wight,  in  the 
expectation  that  the  governor  would  prove  loyal ;  but  the  latter  was 
in  the  pay  of  his  enemies,  so  that  the  king  continued  to  be  a  prisoner. 
Still  it  was  neutral  ground  for  a  time,  from  which  he  was  able  to 
renew  his  negotiations 
with  friends  in  Scot- 
land and  France.  All 
along  Charles  endea- 
voured to  keep  the 
Presbyterians  and  In- 
dependents at  feud, in 
the  hope  that  one  or 
the  other  would  be  glad 
for  the  sake  of  peace  to 
restore  him  to  his  old 
position.  Many  mod- 
erate Presbyterians  now 
joined  the  Royalists 
against  the  Indepen- 
dents ;  and  many 
Scotchmen  who  were 
averse  to  a  republic 
under  Cromwell  crossed 
the  border  to  fight  in 

th^^lfonSf'w^e      "CARISBBOOK  CASTLE,  ISLE   OV   VIVHT. 
irresistible,  and  by  August,  1648,  they  had  entirely  discomfited  the 
Royalist  allies;  and  driven  Charles  I.  to  the  verge  of  despair. 

12.  Regicide. — In  the  flush  of  victory  the  Independent  army 
marched  to  London  and  demanded  'justice  on  the  king'  whom 
they  considered  the  cause  of  the  revived  hostilities  and  consequent 
loss  of  life.  But  the  Presbyterian  members  were  by  no  means  dis- 
posed to  kill  their  lawful  sovereign.  In  fact  they  had  at  last  come  to 
an  agreement  with  Charles,  who  had  despairingly  acquiesced  in  their 
demands  ;  which  included  the  suspension  of  episcopacy  for  three 
years,  and  a  provisional  retention  of  Presbyterianism  in  the  mean- 
time. Cromwell  then  decided  on  a  coup  d'etat.  He  sent  Colonel  Pride 
to  the  House  of  Commons  with  a  band  of  Ironsides,  to  prevent  the 
entrance  of  the  Presbyterian  members  who  formed  a  majority  in  the 
House.  Only  about  fifty-three  sworn  friends  of  the  army  were  allowed 
admittance,  and  they  immediately  passed  a  bill  to  try  the  king  before 
a  special  court  of  their  own  appointment.  There  were  only  twelve 
members  of  the  House  of  Lords  left,  but  they  at  once  rejected 


144  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES   ON 

the  measure  ;  whereupon  the  fifty-three  Independents  resolved  that 
anything  which  they  might  decide  upon  should  have  the  binding 
force  of  law  without  the  consent  of  the  king  or  House  of  Lords. 
The  army  might  as  well  have  examined  and  killed  the  king  by  mar- 
tial law  as  to  have  made  its  name  infamous  by  this  enforced  parody 
of  constitutional  procedure.  No  time  was  lost.  Colonel  Pride  had 
turned  the  Presbyterian  members  out  on  December  6,  1648;  and  before 
the  end  of  the  month  a  '  high  court  of  justice '  was  nominated.  One 
hundred  and  thirty-five  persons  were  named  as  members  of  the  court; 
but  only  sixty-seven  appeared  in  answer  to  their  names.  Sir  Thos. 
Fairfax  was  one  of  the  absentees;  but  his  wife  was  present  when  the 
roll  was  called  (Jan.  20,  1649)  and  indignantly  cried  out, "  He  is 
not  here,  and  will  never  be  ;  you  do  wrong  to  name  him."  The 
chairman  of  the  court  was  a  lawyer  named  Bradshaw.  Charles 
was  arraigned  on  charges  of  treason,  tyranny,  and  murder.  He 
refused  to  plead  to  the  indictment  on  the  ground  that  the  court  was 
not  competent  to  try  him.  The  mock  trial  occupied  seven  days. 
Thirty-two  witnesses  were  examined  and  he  was  condemned  to  be 
beheaded.  The  warrant  for  his  execution,  signed  by  fifty -nine  members 
of  the  court  led  by  Bradshaw,  Grey,  and  Oliver  Cromwell,  is  still  pre- 
served in  the  House  of  Lords.  Charles  was  justly  accused  of  insincerity 
and  double  dealing  ;  but  Churchmen  ought  not  to  forget  that  almost 
up  to  the  Jast  he  might  have  saved  his  life,  and  regained  some 
measure  of  his  former  dignity  and  influence,  if  he  would  have  con- 
sented to  the  abolition  of  the  ancient  Church  of  England.  He 
never  would  consent  to  place  the  National  Church  on  a  level  with 
sectarianism.  He  said  : — '  I  am  firm  to  Primitive  Episcopacy,  not  to 
have  it  extirpated  if  I  can  hinder  it.'  With  reference  to  the  appeals 
of  the  Puritans,  he  writes, '  I  have  done  what  I  could  to  bring  my 
conscience  to  a  compliance  with  their  proposals,  and  cannot  ;  and 
I  will  not  lose  my  conscience  to  save  my  life.'1  He  bore  his  sentence 
calmly,  and  spent  his  remaining  hours  devotionally  in  the  company 
of  William  Juxon,  Bishop  of  London.  On  the  30  Jan.,  1649,  he  was 
put  to  death.  He  had  been  taking  a  tender  farewell  of  his  two 
children — Princess  Elizabeth,  aged  thirteen,  and  Prince  Henry,  aged 
eight  (his  elder  children  were  with  the  Queen  in  France) — when  Bishop 
Jnxon  came  to  say  "  Sire,  there  is  but  one  stage  more,  a  trouble- 
some but  a  short  one."  On  stepping  forth  from  the  window  of 
Whitehall  Palace  on  to  the  scaffold  prepared  for  the  last  scene  in  his 
earthly  life,  he  addressed  a  few  words  to  the  multitude  that  had 
assembled ;  explaining  that  the  guilt  of  the  civil  war  did  not  rest  with 
him,  since  Parliament  had  been  the  first  to  take  up  arms  ;  but  he 
confessed  that  he  deserved  to  die  for  having  consented  to  the  death  of 
Strafford.  As  he  knelt  down  and  laid  his  head  upon  the  block  he 

1  From  EikSn  Basiliki,  a  contemporary  biography  of  Charles  I. ;  said  by  some 
to  have  been  written  by  the  king  himself,  and  by  others  to  have  been  the  work  of 
his  friend  Bishop  Oauden.  Parts  of  it  ar«  certainly  in  the  handwriting  of  Charles. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY. 


145 


CHARLES  I.   PASTING   WITH   HIS   CHILDREN. 


i46  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

exclaimed  "  I  go  from  a  corruptible  to  an  incorruptible  crown.'* 
They  buried  him  in  St.  George's  Chapel,  Windsor,  but  the  burial 
service  of  the  Church  of  England  was  not  allowed  to  be  read  over  his 
remains.  The  judicial  execution  of  a  king  was  never  heard  of  before, 
and  the  majority  of  his  subjects  felt  that  he  had  been  illegally  con- 
demned and  that  the  Constitution  was  at  the  mercy  of  the  army. 
Until  recently  a  service  of  humiliation  was  appended  to  the  Book  of 
Common  Prayer,  for  use  on  the  anniversary  of  his  death,  which  spoke 
of  him  as  '  King  Charles  the  Martyr.'  It  was  removed  in  1859. 


CHAPTER    XX  El  I.     (A.D.  1649-1660). 
UNDER   THE  COMMONWEALTH. 

"  0,  terrible  excess 

Of  headstrong  will !    Can  this  be  piety  ? 
No— some  fierce  maniac  hath  usurped  her  name  ; 
And  scourges  England  struggling  to  be  free." — Wordsworth. 

1.  Proceedings  of  the  '  Rump.'— Few  will  wonder  at  the 
determination  of  modern  Englishmen  to  support  the  Church  of  England 
in  her  legal  privileges,  on  the  ground  that  the  welfare  of  the  Consti- 
tution is  bound  up  in  her  prosperity,  when  they  remember  the 
sequence  of  memorable  events  for  which  the  Long  Parliament  was 
responsible  ;  especially  as  it  is  the  only  occasion  in  history  when 
there  was  a  majority  of  members  in  the  House  of  Commons  pledged 
to  uproot  the  National  Church.  First  the  ancient  government  of  the 
Church  was  overthrown,  the  bishops  being  imprisoned,  exiled,  or 
murdered.  Next  the  ancient  service  books  were  proscribed  and 
supplanted  by  the  Westminster  formularies;  while  all  petitions  on 
behalf  of  the  Church  were  voted  seditious,  and  the  signatories 
criminally  proceeded  against.  Then  the  most  ancient  civil  govern- 
ment— the  honoured  kingdom  of  England,  with  its  council  of  spiritual 
and  temporal  peers — was  suppressed  ;  and  a  military  despotism  set 
up  in  its  place,  which  soon  overwhelmed  the  more  modern  legislative 
body  also.  Two  days  after  the  funeral  of  the  '  martyred '  king 
the  '  Rump '  (as  the  remnant  of  the  Long  Parliament  became  con- 
temptuously called)  proceeded  to  confirm  CoL  Pride's  expulsion  of 
the  Presbyterian  members.  On  Feb.  6  it  declared  the  House  of  Lords 
abolished,  and  the  following  day  prohibited  the  government  of 
England  by  a  king  or  sirrgle  person.  On  the  19th  of  May  it  surpassed 
all  previous  efforts  by  declaring  the  country  to  be  A  Commonwealth. 
Strictly  speaking,  everything  that  they  did  was  flagrantly  illegal, 
save  the  legality  of  having  might  on  their  side.  It  also  issued  a 
declaration  on  religion,  and  compelled  all  ministers  to  take  a  new 


ENGLISH   CHURCH    HISTORY.  147 

oath,  called  The  Engagement,  annulling  the  Covenanters'  Oath,  by 
which  they  bound  themselves  "  to  be  true  and  faithful  to  the  Com- 
monwealth without  a  king  or  house  of  peers."  But  there  was  still 
life  in  the  monarchy.  There  is  a  proverb  belonging  to  all  kingdoms  : — 
"  Le  Roi  est  mort,  I7rc  le  Roi  " — and  the  eldest  surviving  son  of  the 
late  king,  who  had  escaped  with  his  mother  to  the  Continent,  at  once 
assumed  the  style  of  Charles  II.  ;  and  prepared  to  claim  his  right. 

2.  Religious  Anarchy. — All  ecclesiastical  discipline  was  over- 
thrown during  the  civil  war.  Half  the  clergy  had  been  expelled 
by  the  committees  that  dealt  with  'scandalous  and  malignant 
ministers;'  many  of  the  remaining  half  were  driven  out  for  declin- 
ing to  accept  the  Covenant ;  a  still  further  reduction  ensuing 
from  refusals  to  take  the  '  engagement '  oath.  '  Swarms  of  all 
sorts  of  illiterate  mechanic  preachers,  yea,  of  women  and  boy 
preachers '  occupied  their  places  ;  thus  facilitating  the  dissemination 
of  lawless  opinions.  Frequently  Puritan  soldiers  would  turn  the 
preachers  out  of  the  pulpits  at  service  time  and  occupy  their  places. 
Those  who  felt  inclined  to  propagate  their  personal  opinions  found 
it  easy  to  do  so  in  the  name  of  religion.  Had  not  Oliver  Cromwell 
vigorously  suppressed  fanatics  the  country  would  have  been  ruined 
utterly.  Some  mutinous  soldiers,  called  'Levellers,  who  desired  to 
obliterate  all  distinctions  of  rank  or  wealth  and  abolish  ministers 
of  every  kind,  had  to  be  promptly  executed.  The  more  earnest 
royalists  and  faithful  clergy  fled  to  France  ;  and  when  it  chanced 
that  any  were  able  to  get  passports  to  return  and  set  their  temporal 
affairs  in  order,  they  found  '  the  pulpits  full  of  novices  and  novelties.' 
"  Going  this  day  (Dec.  4, 1653)  to  our  Church  I  was  surprised  to  see  a  tradesman,  a 
mechanic,  step  up.  I  was  resolv'd  yet  to  stay  and  see  what  he  would  make  of  it. 
His  text  was  from  2  Sam.  ch.  23,  v.  20.  '  And  Benaiah  went  down  also  and  slew  a 
lion  in  the  midst  of  a  pit  in  the  time  of  snow  ; '  the  purport  was,  that  no  danger 
was  to  be  thought  difficult  when  God  called  for  shedding  of  blood,  inferring  that 
now  '  the  Saints '  were  called  to  destroy  temporal  governments."— Evelyn's  Diary. 

So  rapidly  did  every  wild  and  lawless  opinion  find  adherents,  that 
the  new  Government  was  compelled  to  impose  tests  of  orthodoxy, 
and  take  upon  itself  the  censorship  of  public  morals.  For  this  state 
of  things  the  party  then  in  power  had  only  themselves  to  blame. 
"  With  extreme  license  the  common  people,  almost  from  the  very 
beginning  of  the  Parliament,  took  upon  themselves  the  reforming 
without  authority,  order,  or  decency ;  rudely  ^disturbing  Church  ser- 
vice while  the  Common  Prayer  was  reading,  tearing  the  books, 
surplices,  and  such  things." '  They  considered  that  the  Parliamentary 
order  to  destroy  all  '  monuments  of  idolatry'  gave  them  liberty  and 
license  for  every  kind  of  sacrilege  :  ao  that  it  became  a  common 

1  May's  History  of  the  Long  Parliament. 

F2 


148 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    OA 


pastime  to  break  the  painted  windows  and  deface  the  statuary  which 
adorned  and  beautified  the  churches.     The  old  market  crosses  which 
had  been  a  notable 
feature  of  English 
towns,     reminding 
the   passers  by  of 
the  great    Act    of 
Redemption,   were 
all  ruthlessly  des- 
troyed.    In  speak- 
ing of  the  diseases 
of  his  age,  Bishop 
Andrews    declared 
that  there  had  been 
"  a  good  riddance 
of  images  ;  yet  for 
imaginations,  they 
be    daily  stamped 
in   great    number, 
and,  instead  of  the 
old  images,  set  up, 
deified,    and   wor- 
shipped."    In    the 
year  1647  all  stage 
plays     were     pro- 
hibited as  danger- 
ous to  morals,  the 
theatres  closed,  and 
the  actors  publicly 
whipped.   This  can 
be  understood  and 
defended ;    for  the 
words    and    topics 
of  the  dramas  then 
presented   were,  to 
say  the  least,  suggestive  of  immorality ;  but  it  seems  to  modern  ideas 
that  the  Long  Parliament  carried  its  censorship  too  far  when  the 
eountry  folk  were  punished  for  wrestling  on  the  village  greens,  or 
dancing  round  the  maypoles. 

3.  The  Quakers. — A  grim  commentary  on  the  Puritan  demands 
for  religious  liberty  is  furnished  by  the  stern  repressive  measures 
enforced  against  Unitarians,  Anaba  ptists,  and  Quakers  ;  who  shared 
with  Romanists  and  English  Churchmen  the  enmity  of  the  Common- 
wealth. Quakers  came  into  notice  about  1650.  Their  early  practices 
differed  strongly  from  the  inoffensive  character  of  the  modern  Society 
of  Friends.  A  contemporary  writer  describes  them  as  '  a  new  sect 


DESTRUCTION   OF  CHEAPSIDE   CEO3S. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  149 

who  shew  no  respect  to  any  man,  magistrate,  or  other,  and  seem  a 
melancholy  proud  sort  of  people  and  exceedingly  ignorant.'  Their 
leaders  were  G'-orye  FHJC  and  James  Baylor.  The  latter  was  a  half- 
mad  fanatic,  whose  misdiiected  zeal  brought  discredit  on  the  whole 
community.  Some  of  his  immediate  followers  came  to  be  regarded 
as  public  pests.  One  is  ?aid  to  have  stood  at  the  door.of  the  Parlia- 
ment House  with  a  drawn  sword,  and  declared  that  the  Holy  Ghost 
had  moved  him  to  slay  all  members  who  should  attempt  to  enter. 
Others  used  to  rush  about  the  streets  in  a  state  of  nudity  and  wildly 
condemn  ihe  evils  of  the  time.  It  was  quite  a  customary  practice 
for  them  to  carry  on  their  trades  all  through  Sundays,  and  disturb 
other  congregations  by  denouncing  the  preachers  as  '  false  prophets ' 
and  '  lying  witnesses.'  Naylor  was  at  last  arrested,  whipped,  branded, 
and  bored  through  the  tongue,  while  the  prisons  were  filled  with  the 
zealots  who  half  worshipped  him.  'It  is  due  to  the  memory  of  George 
Fox  to  say  that  he  repudiated  the  fanatical  proceedings  of  his 
friends,  but  even  he,  good  man  that  he  was,  several  times  suffered 
imprisonment  for  contempt  of  court  and  refusal  to  pay  tithes.  A 
better  known  leader  of  this  sect  was  Wm.  Penn,  the  founder  of  the 
State  of  Pennsylvania  ;  but  neither  he  nor  Fox  would  ever  doff  their 
hats  in  presence  of  magistrates  or  majesty.  The  tenets  of  the 
Quakers  which  have  survived  in  those  of  the  Society  of  Friends  are 
hatred  of  war.  objection  to  oaths,  the  non-necessity  of  sacraments  or 
ministerial  orders,  and  the  individual  guidance  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 
They  have  always  been  noted  for  their  personal  piety. 

4.  Worcester  Fight. — Irishmen  and  Scotchmen  acknowledged 
Charles  II.  for  their  hereditary  monarch  as  soon  as  it  was  known 
that  his  father  had  been  beheaded.  The  Irish  were  the  first  to  ask 
the  exiled  prince  to  come  to  their  aid  against  Cromwell  s  military 
despotism  ;  but  before  he  could  reach  them  the  '  man  of  the  sword  ' 
had  captured  the  royalist  stronghold  of  Drogheda  and  massacred  all 
the  able-bodied  men  in  cold  blood.  Charles  II.  then  made  his  way 
to  Scotland  (1650)  and  agreed  to  the  Covenant  for  that  kingdom. 
The  Scots  rallied  round  his  standard  in  vain,  for  Cromwell  again 
tasted  the  sweets  of  victory  at  Dunbar  and  at  Leith.  On  the  first  of 
January,  1651,  Charles  was  crowned  at  Scone,  and  set  up  his  camp 
at  Stirling.  While  Cromwell  was  engaged  at  Perth  he  made  a 
strategic  movement  and  invaded  England  with  11,000  Scotch 
soldiers,  arriving  at  Worcester  August  23.  Cromwell  followed  him 
five  days  later,  and  there  was  a  great  battle  fought  on  both  sides  of 
the  town  at  once,  Sept.  3,  1651.  This  was  not  merely  a  civil  war, 
it  was  distinctly  a  religious  one  so  far  as  the  soldiers  were  concerned; 
for  while  the  Scotch  adopted  "  The  Covenant  "  for  thfir  battle  cry, 
Cromwell's  Ironsides  shouted  "  The  Lord  of  Hosts  ;  "  and  when  the 
day  was  decided  in  Cromwell's  favour,  and  the  streets  of  Worcester 
were  deluged  with  the  blood  of  tne  royalists,  whom  the  victors  slew 

1    3173  Qnalcers  -were  impriioned  by  the  Puritans.    32  of  them  died  in  Prison. 


150  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

without  pity,  the  grim  leader  declared  that  it  was  '  Heaven'g  crowning 
mercy '  on  his  cause.  That  fatal  day  put  an  end  to  the  hopes  of 
Charles  II.  for  a  time.  But  he  escaped  from  the  scene  of  carnageand 
baffled  all  attempts  of  the  Cromwellians  to  find  him,  chiefly  through 
the  assistance  of  a  lady  who  disguised  him  as  her  serving  man.  After 
many  romantic  adventures,  which  proved  how  many  staunchly  loyal 
folk  there  were  all  over  the  south  and  west  of  England,  the  king 
managed  to  reach  Shoreham,  whence  he  crossed  to  France  in  a  coal 
ship,  October  1651,  although  not  without  his  share 

'  Of  moving  accidents  by  flood  and  field.' 

To  prevent  any  further  risings  in  the  Stuart  cause  Cromwell  kept 
standing  armies  in  Ireland  and  in  Scotland.  His  son-in-law,  Ireton, 
commanded  the  Irish  garrison,  and  General  Monk  the  Scotch  division. 

5.  Destruction  of  Churches.1— The  greatest  cause  of  lasting 
grief,  which  has  made  the  great  rebellion  infamous,  was  the  wanton 
destruction  of  the  cathedrals  and  churches  by  the  soldiery.  Wherever 
the  rival  armies  went  the  sacred  edifices  were  used  as  barracks, 
stables,  hospitals,  and  fortresses.  That  was  to  be  expected  ;  but 
much  worse  sacrilege  has  been  recorded.  AUowances  might  be 
made  for  the  heated  passions  of  the  victorious  Puritans  after  such 
a  fight  as  Worcester,  and  if  the  destruction  had  been  confined  to 
such  occasions  no  notice  would  have  been  taken  of  it  in  these  pages. 
But  destruction  was  everywhere,  and  deliberate  ;  and  accompanied 
by  the  most  derisive  profanation.  Soon  after  the  Civil  War  had 
been  commenced  parliamentary  troops  occupied  the  city  of  Here- 
ford. On  the  first  Sunday  of  their  residence  they  went  to  the  cathe- 
dral and  showed  their  contempt  and  scorn  of  our  Church's  services 
by  dancing  on  the  tesselated  pavement  of  the  edifice  as  soon 
as  the  organ  began  to  play.  In  1645  the  Puritan  army  again 
besieged  that  city  and  did  much  material  damage  to  the  cathedral 
fabric.  Dean  Croft  preached  to  the  soldiers  against  the  sin  of 
sacrilege  and  very  nearly  lost  his  life  for  his  pains.  They  destroyed 
the  windows,  tore  up  the  brasses,  and  carried  off  the  ornaments.  As 
in  other  dioceses  the  episcopal  estates  were  sequestered,  and  the 
revenues  bestowed  upon  the  Parliament  men  ;  Puritan  preachers 
taking  the  place  of  the  clergy.  The  history  of  every  diocese  tells 
the  same  sad  tale  of  the  cold-blooded  demolition  of  every  artistic 
detail  in  the  churches,  and  the  irreverent  and  coarse  jests  of  the 
military.  It  was  a  well-known  intention  of  the  Long  Parliament 
that  this  kind  of  thing  should  be  winked  at,  and  therefore,  whenever 
the  curator*  of  a  beautiful  church  heard  that  the  Puritan  soldiers 
were  coming  they  would  themselves  remove  and  hide  the  choicest 
carvings  and  statuary  with  a  view  to  their  restoration  in  quieter 
time*.  At  Winchester  the  soldiers  broke  open  the  west  door  of  the 

I  The  quotations  in  this  section  »r«  from  the  S.P.C.K.  Diocesan  Historic*. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY. 


151 


cathedral  while  the  morning  service  was  going  on.  and  marched  up 
the  nave  with  colours  flying  and  drums  beating.  The  tombs  were 
rifled,  and  the  bones  of  the  dead  used  as  missiles  to  break  the 
windows  that  were  too  high  for  the  halberds  to  reach.  The  altar 
was  removed  to  an  alehouse  and  burnt  along  with  the  service  books. 
The  soldiers  arrayed  themselves  in  the  surplices  of  the  choir,  and 
marched  in  mock  procession  through  the  city  with  banners,  crosses, 
and  pictures  ;  tooting  upon  the  pipes  which  they  had  torn  from  the 
organ.  Similar  scenes  were  witnessed  in  the  city  of  Norwich.  At 
Chichester  the  soldiers  ran  '  up  and  down  the  church  with  their 
swords  drawn,  defacing  the  monuments,  hacking  and  hewing  the 
seats  and  stalls,  scratching  and  scraping  the  painted  walls.  Sir  W. 
Waller  and  the  rest  of  the  commanders  standing  by  as  spectators  of 
these  impious  barbarities ;  .  .  .  .  the  chalice  was  broken  into 
bits  for  division  of  the  spoil,  and  the  Bible  marked  in  divers  places 
with  a  black  coal.'  At  St.  Asaph,  the  cathedral  was  used  as  a  stable 
for  the  horses  of  one  Miller,  a  postmaster,  who  occupied  the  bishop's 
palace  as  an  inn,  fed  his  calves  in  the  bishop's  throne,  and  removed 
the  font  into  his  yard  for  use  as  a  watering  trough.'  Exeter 


HEREFORD   CATHEDRAL. 


152 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


Cathedral  arid  Wells  Cathedral  were  each  divided  in  two  parts  by 
a  brick  wall  for  the  express  purpose  of  being  used  for  different 
denominations,  the  Independents  in  one  part  and  the  Presbyterians 
in  the  other.  At  Lichfield  Cathedral  the  fanaticism  of  the  Puritan 
soldiers  found  outlets  in  the  most  derisive  profanation.  To  hunt  a  cat 
with  hounds  within  its  walls  was  a  daily  sport ;  and  they  shewed  their 
contempt  of  the  Sacrament  of  Holy  Baptism  by  dressing  up  a 
calf  in  infant's  clothes,  and  sprinkling  it  at  the  font.  "  On  Feb.  18, 
1653,  it  was  ordered  that  all  the  cathedral  churches  in  England, 
where  there  are  other  churches  sufficient  for  the  people  to  meet  in  for 


PONTEFEACT    OLD   CHURCH. 

the  worship  of  God,  should  be  surveyed,  pulled  down,  and  the 
materials  sold  ;'  and  in  the  following  July  a  committee  was  appointed 
to  '  consider  what  cathedrals  should  stand  or  what  part  thereof.  " 
But  the  parliamentary  changes  together  with  the  petitions  of 
residents,  prevented  the  execution  of  this  last  design.  The  despoilers 
were  fain  to  content  themselves  with  seizure  of  the  church  plate  and 
stripping  the  lead  from  the  roofs  which  was  used  to  furnish  in  part 
the  sinews  for  Cromwell's  war  with  the  Dutch.  The  same  destruc- 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  153 

tion  and  spoliation  fell  upon  the  grand  old  parish  churches  every- 
where, although,  as  with  the  cathedrals,  the  injuries  have  been 
repaired  in  recent  times.  Lambeth  Palace  was  made  over  to  a  couple 
of  the  regicides,  one  of  whom  divided  the  chapel  into  two  parts; 
using  one  portion  for  a  dining  hall  and  the  other  as  a  recreation 
room.  The  tomb  of  Archbishop  Parker  was  broken  open  and 
removed,  his  bones  being  scattered  about.  Truly  has  it  been  said 
that  those  were  times  of  public  ruin  and  confusion,  Pontefract 
Church  is  still  in  the  ruinous  condition  that  the  Puritans  left  it. 
The  parishioners  still  tell  their  children  the  story  of  how,  upon  the 
neighbouring  castle  hill,  the  soldiers  planted  their  cannons  ;  and 
then  bombarded  the  church.  There  has  not  been  enough  enthusiasm 
in  Pontefract  to  wipe  out  the  stain  by  restoring  its  former  glory,  and 
the  people  are  still  compelled  to  worship  in  the  patched  up  transepts. 
If  something  is  not  speedily  done  it  will  be  past  restoration.  Not 
without  reason  did  Church  folk  under  the  Commonwealth  feel  them- 
selves in  the  position  of  the  captive  Jews,  and  cry: — "  O  God  !  the 
heathen  are  come  into  Thine  inheritance  :  Thy  holy  temple  have 
they  denied,  and  made  Jerusalem  an  heap  of  stones." 

6.  Cromwell's  Parliaments.—  The  'Rump.'as the  remnantof  the 
Long  Parliament  was  called,  soon  became  objectionable  to  Cromwell. 
It  wanted  more  power  in  the  direction  of  affairs  than  he  was  disposed 
to  tolerate.  Their  relations  came  to  a  climax  over  the  Perpetuation 
Bill,  by  which  the  Parliament  was  to  be  increased  to  400  members; 
but  the  members  of  the  '  Rump  '  were  to  continue  sitting  without 
re-election,  and  become  a  committee  with  power  to  reject  any  new 
members  that  should  be  elected  whom  they  thought  dangerous  to  the 
Commonwealth  !  The  Act  of  1641 ,  by  which  Parliament  was  not  to 
be  dissolved  without  its  own  consent,  was  very  precious  to  the 
•  Rump' ;  but  Cromwell  found  a  way  of  effecting  his  purpose  in  spite 
thereof.  On  April  20,  1653,  he  went  down  to  the  house  accompanied 
by  300  trusty  soldiers.  These  he  left  outside  while  he  went  in  to 
harangue  the  53  members  who  were  discussing  the  Bill  referred  to. 
He  soon  began  to  abuse  the  members,  and  when  they  objected  to  his 
unparliamentary  language  he  shouted  "  I'll  put  an  end  to  your 
prating.  You  are  no  parliament.  Get  you  gone  !  Give  way  tc 
honester  men.  It  is  not  fit  you  should  sit  here  any  longer."  At  a 
given  signal  the  musketeers  rushed  in  and  cleared  out  the  astonished 
members.  "  What  shall  we  do  with  this  bauble?"  cried  the  general 
as  he  lifted  the  mace.  '•  Take  it  away."  As  the  members  reluctantly 
dispersed  Cromwell  heaped  upon  them  words  of  obloquy.  '•  You 
have  forced  me  to  do  this — I  have  sought  the  Lord  day  and  night 
that  he  would  slay  me  rather  than  put  me  upon  the  doing  of  this 
work."  Cromwell's  religious  'voices'  ever  mingled  themselves  with 
his  destructive  wrath.  When  all  the  members  had  departed  the  door 
was  locked,  and  th«  key  carried  away  by  one  of  the  general's  colonels 


154  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

and  no  more  was  heard  of  the  '  Rump'  for  a  season.  Henceforth 
Cromwell  was  supreme,  with  or  without  the  will  of  the  people.  '  No 
Bishops ' — '  no  King ' — and  then  '  no  Parliament.'  A  memorable  se- 
quence !  And  every  effort  was  made  to  prevent  them  from  being 
restored.  The  nation  was  not  allowed  to  express  an  opinion  upon 
these  changes.  Everything  was  done  by  the  vote  of  the  army  and  the 
vigour  of  Oliver  Cromwell.  He  now  called  together  a  parliament  of 
his  own  nominees,  not  in  any  sense  a  representative  body,  but  men 
chosen  for  their  devotion  to  the  cause  Cromwell  represented;  men  who 
belonged  to 'the  Lord's  people.'  But  his  ' godly '  nominees  turned 
out  a  most  refractory  set,  without  practical  knowledge  of  men  and 
laws,  with  few  or  no  ideas  beyond  the  repression  of  '  popery  and 
prelacy.'  They  are  known  as  the  'Barcbones  Parliament,'  from  the 
peculiar  name  (Praise-God-Barebones)  of  one  of  its  members  ;  a 
leather-seller  in  the  city  of  London.  It  met  July  4,  1653,  and  very 
soon  set  to  work  upon  religious  questions.  A  proposal  to  confiscate 
all  ecclesiastical  revenues,  in  order  to  pay  the  stipends  of  itinerant 
preachers  of  their  own  appointment,  was  only  lost  by  two  votes.  It 
also  proposed  to  abolish  the  old  system  of  ecclesiastical  patronage, 
the  payment  of  tithes,  and  religious  services  at  weddings  ;  but  could 
not  agree  as  to  details.  At  the  end  of  five  months  this  contemptible 
assembly,  which  was  the  jest  of  the  people,  resigned  its  power  to  the 
man  who  had  bestowed  it,  and  passed  into  an  unregretted  oblivion. 
Cromwell  then  held  a  council  of  officers,  and  although  the  decree  of 
Feb.  7,  1649,  had  never  been  repealed,  they  resolved  to  have  a 
Commonwealth  in  a  single  person,  viz. — HIMSELF,  who  should 
bear  the  title  of  '  Lord  Protector.'  A  written  constitution  called 
the  Instrument  of  Government  was  drawn  up  ;  by  which  he 
bound  himself  (among  other  things)  to  extend  religious  liberty 
to  all  who  differed  from  the  doctrine,  worship  and  discipline 
of  Independency,  provided  that  this  liberty  be  not  extended  to 
popery  or  prelacy,  nor  to  such  as  under  the  profession  of  Christ  hold 
forth  and  practice  licentiousness.  By  the  '  Instrument'  Cromwell  was 
bound  also  to  call  a  parliament  together,  which  should  meet  once  a 
year.  The  first  protectorate  Parliament  met  on  September  3,  1654. 
In  the  meantime  Cromwell  had  issued  a  number  of  ordinances,  such 
as  the  appointment  of  the  Commissions  to  examine  the  clergy  (page 
156).  Some  of  the  members  of  the  new  Parliament  objected  to  the 
'  Instrument',  and  especially  to  government  by  a  single  person  ;  and 
Cromwell  expelled  about  a  hundred  of  them  from  the  House,  on  the 
ground  that  they  had  been  elected  under  the  conditions  of  the 
Instrument  and  were  bound  to  accede  to  its  provisions  (September  12). 
But  even  the  members  who  agreed  to  sign  the  Instrument  were  con- 
tinually trying  to  limit  Cromwell's  power,  so  he  determined  to 
dissolve  that  Parliament  also  ;  which  was  done  January  22,  1655. 
Henceforth  Cromwell  assumed  supreme  control  of  the  helm  of  state, 
and  governed  the  country  in  a  far  more  arbitrary  and  autocratic 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY. 


155 


manner  than  any  previous  king  had  done.  And  because  the  Church 
of  England  was  synonymous  to  his  mind  with  Charles  Stuart  he  took 
care  that  it  should  be  rent  and  crippled  in  every  way;  although  here 
and  there  a  few  private  houses  of  influential  laymen  were  allowed  to 
be  used  as  secret  meeting  places  for  Churchmen,  under  a  show  of 
toleration.  A  royalist  rising  in  the  west  of  England  furnished  a  pretext 
for  fresh  oppre.-sion.  The  necessity  of  levying  fresh  taxes  to  pay  for 
his  expensive  foreign  wars  demanded  that  another  Parliament  should 
be  called.  The  elected  members  met  September  17,  1656  ;  and 

Cromwell  felt  it 
needful  to  begin 
the  session  with 
an  excuse  for 
his  intolerance  to 
the  Cavalier  in- 
terest (i.e..  the 
Church),  on  the 
ground  that  it 
was  '  the  badge 
and  character 
countenancing  of 
profaneness.  dis- 
order, and  wick- 
edness in  all 
places;  and  what- 
soever is  most 
akin  to  these  and 
what  is  popery ; 
and  with  the 
profane  nobility 
of  this  nation  ! ' 
From  this  second 
Parliament  of 
his  protectorate 
Oliver  excluded 
all  those  who 
were  not  ready  to 
support  his  ideals 
of  civil  and  re- 


OLIVEB   CBOMWELL   EXPELLING  THE  '  BUMP.' 


ligious  government,  and  the  trusty  remnant  offered  him  the  title 
of  'king'  (March  29.  1657).  But  the  army  strongly  objected, 
and  after  several  ineffectual  conferences  with  the  officers  the  coveted 
'feather  in  his  cap 'was  declined.  But  he  accepted  the  'Humble 
Petition  and  Ad V ice'  which  gave  him  authority  to  nominate 
his  successor,  and  create  a  new  peerage,  so  that  he  was  king  in  all  but 
the  name  ;  those  who  refused  to  take  the  oath  to  Mm  being  deprived 
of  all  their  offices.  In  the  parliamentary  rtcess  Cromwell  made 


156  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

peers  of  his  most  devoted  followers,  and  invited  some  of  the  old 
'  profane  nobility '  to  join  them.  The  latter  contemptuously  declined. 
When  Parliament  resumed  its  sessions — Protector,  Lords,  and 
Commons — January  20,  1658,  the  previously  excluded  members  were 
allowed  to  take  their  seats  in  the  House  of  Commons.  As  the  warmest 
supporters  of  Cromwell  had  been  removed  to  the  '  upper  house,'  these 
formed  the  majority  of  members,  and  at  once  proceeded  to  repudiate 
all  that  had  been  done  in  the  Autumn  session  of  1657.  Boiling  over 
with  indignation  Cromwell  dissolved  this  Parliament  also  within  a 
fortnight  of  its  meeting,  and  did  not  live  to  call  another.  This  need- 
ful review  of  Cromwell  and  his  legislative  assemblies  shows  that 
he  was  guilty  of  every  indiscretion  which  had  been  considered  a 
crime  in  Charles  I.  The  '  Petition  of  Right '  was  broken  every  day. 
Taxes  were  levied  and  men  imprisoned  against  the  will  of  Parliament, 
and  without  cause  shown  ;  and  men  were  detained  months  and  years 
in  prison  without  even  being  brought  to  trial,  simply  because  they 
objected  to  the  rule  of  an  uncrowned  despot. 

7.  Sufferings  of  the  Clergy. — We  have  already  seen  that 
some  thousands  of  the  lawful  incumbents  had  been  ejected  from 
their  benefices  because  they  were  loyal  to  the  Church,  and  their 
places  filled  by  unordained  persons  ;  but  that  did  not  satisfy 
Cromwell.  Under  the  powers  of  the  '  Instrument '  he  issued  an 
ordinance  (March  20,  1654)  appointing  a  'Committee  of  Triers' 
whose  business  was  to  enquire  into  the  character  and  principles  of 
all  persons  who  were  nominated  to  their  benefices  by  the  ancient 
system  of  patronage,  and  to  appoint  others  in  the  room  of  such  as 
should  be  rejected  ;  because  '  for  some  time  past  no  certain  course 
had  been  established  for  the  supplying  vacant  places  with  able  and  fit 
persons,  whereby  many  weak,  scandalous,  popish,  and  ill-affected 
persons  had  intruded  themselves."  The  test  of  ability  and  lituess 
was  explained  by  a  subsequent  ordinance  (Sept  2)  to  mean  "  ex- 
perience of  their  conformity  and  submision  to  the  present  government." 
Bat  the  'Triers'  could  only  deal  with  future  appointments,  and 
there  were  still  many  loyal  clergy  who  had  not  been  removed  by  the 
various  processes  detailed  in  the  last  chapter.  These  were  to  be 
got  rid  of  by  sub-committees  for  ejecting  'scandalous'  ministers, 
appointed  by  virtue  of  another  ordinance  (Aug.  30),  whose  duties 
were  to  inquire  minutely  into  the  character  and  politics  of  clergy 
already  possessed  of  benefices.  These  sub-committees  created  vacancies 
in  every  county  which  the  Triers  proceeded  to  fill.  The  unfortunate 
ejected  incumbents  then  endeavoured  to  obtain  a  bare  subsistence 
for  themselves  and  their  families  by  educating  other  peoples' 
children,  and  acting  as  chaplains  in  well-to-do  royalist  families. 
But  Cromwell  had  no  mind  to  let  them  earn  an  honest  livelihood. 
On  the  27th  of  November,  1655,  he  issued  an  edict  which,  for 
sere  rity  and  intolerance,  would  be  difficult  to  match  : — 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY. 


167 


"  His  Highness,  by  the  advic«  of  his  Council  doth  publish,  declare,  and  order  : — 
That  no  person  or  persons  do,  from  and  after  the  first  day  of  January  (1656)  keep  in 
their  houses  or  families  as  chaplains,  or  schoolmasters  for  the  education  of  their 
children,  any  sequestered  or  ejected  minister,  fellow  of  a  college,  or  schoolmaster  ; 
nor  permit  any  of  their  children  to  be  taught  by  such  ;  in  pain  of  being  proceeded 
against  in  such  sort  as  the  said  orders  do  direct  in  such  cases.  And  that  no  person 
who  hath  been  sequestered  or  ejected  out  of  any  benefice,  college,  or  school,  for 
delinquency  or  scandal,  shall,  from  and  after  the  said  first  day  of  January,  keep  any 
school  either  public  or  private  ;  nor  shall  any  person,  -who  after  that  time  shall  b« 
ejected  for  the  causes  aforesaid,  preach  in  any  public  place,  or  at  any  private 
meeting  of  other  persons  besides  his  own  family ;  nor  administer  baptism  or  th« 
Lord's  Supper,  or  marry  any  persons,  or  use  the  book  of  Common  Prayer,  or  th« 
forms  therein  contained  ;  upon  pain  that  every  person  «o  offending  shall  be  proceeded 
against  as  by  the  said  orders  is  provided." 

This  is  the  way  the  Lord  Protector  acted,  -whom  some  modern  writer* 
are  anxious  to"  belaud  as  a  model  of  Christian  tolerance.  The  penalty 
for  offending  against  his  ordinances  was  imprisonment  and  banish- 
ment. The  jails  were  immediately  filled  to  overflowing,  and  for 
want  of  room  the  '  malignant '  clergy  were  imprisoned  in  palace 
fortresses  and  in  the  dismantled  hulks  of  worn  out  ships.  The  Water 
Tower  of  Lambeth  Palace  (see  page  7)  had  been  used  as  a  prison 
ever  since  1645  ;  but  we  need  not  multiply  examples  of  the  ill- 
treatment  metal  out  to  the  clergy  who  were  there  incarcerated. 
Dr.  Edmund  Pocock,  a  world  renowned  Oriental  scholar,  was  charged 
before  the  Berkshire  sub-committee  for  having  used  parts  of  the 

Prayer-book  in  public  worship.  He 
was  condemned  for  insufficiency .' 
The  rejection  of  the  most  learned 
man  of  his  day  on  such  a  ground 
was  too  ridiculous  even  for  the 
Nonconformists  ;  and  on  the  inter- 
cession of  Dr.  Owen,  a  famous 
Puritan  minister,  Cromwell  over- 
ruled the  decision.  Dr.  Jeremy 
Taylor,  '  the  Shakespeare  of  Di- 
vines,' was  rector  of  Uppingham 
until  the  Civil  War ;  when  h« 
attended  the  king  in  camp  as  chap- 
lain. He  was  taken  captive  and 
imprisoned  in  Chepstow  Castle. 
There  he  wrote  a  famous  book 
pleading  for  religious  toleration, 
called  Liberty  of  Prophesying.  On 
being  released  he  became  chaplain 
to  the  Earl  of  Carbery  and  wrote 
DK.  JEHKMV  TAVLUK.  Mg  ,  Holy  Living^  •  Holy  Dying,' 

and  the  '  Golden  Grove'  which  have  been  of  untold  value  to  number- 


158  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES   ON 

less  Christians  in  spiritual  need.  He  was  imprisoned  again  under  the 
powers  of  the  edict  of  1655,  because  he  had  preached  to  a  small  congre- 
gation of  faithful  Churchmen  who  met  for  secret  worship  in  London. 
Records  were  kept  of  the  sufferings  of  the  clergy  during  the 
Rebellion  and  the  Commonwealth  that  are  simply  appalling  in  their 
horror.  We  take  two  extracts  at  random,  from  Hutching's  History 
of  Dorset,  as  examples  of  the  prevalent  bitterness. 

"  THOMAS  CLAKK,  Rector  of  Haslebury  Brian,  a  man  of  unblemished  reputation, 
was  dispossessed  and  plundered.  His  son,  a  clergyman,  was  shot  to  death  on  the 
road.  He  died  during  the  Common  wealth.  The  intruder,  James  Kawson,  claimed  the 
living  at  the  Restoration,  but  the  Commissioners  disallowed  the  claim  because  he 
had  publicly  prayed  for  the  extermination  of  the  royal  family,  and  libelled  the 
quean  in  a  sermon." 

"  ROGER  CLARK,  Rector  of  Ashmore,  near  Shaftesbury,  was  plundered  of  all  that 
he  had,  and  twice  imprisoned.  Two  of  hi»  children  (twins)  were  stripped  naked 
and  laid  in  a  dripping  pan  before  the  fire  to  be  roasted  ;  their  mother  being  almost 
denuded  of  clothing." 

These  are  not  isolated  or  exceptional  cases.  The  modern  friends  of 
the  Puritans  disclaim  on  the  part  of  the  authorities  any  responsi- 
bility for  these  cruelties  ;  but  it  is  certain  that  the  army  ruled  the 
land,  and  that  the  officers  seldom  punished  excesses  of  their  men. 
Here  and  there  dangers  were  braved  and  services  conducted  on 
Prayer-book  lines,  the  petitions  being  committed  to  memory  so  as  to 
keep  within  the  letter  of  the  Directory  ;  and  sometimes  episcopally 
ordained  men  obtained  posts  as  Lecturers  ;  but  most  of  the  clergy 
fled  from  the  country,  or  hid  themselves,  or  were  in  prison.  A 
contemporary  layman  wrote  in  his  diary  against  March  1658 : 
"  There  was  now  a  collection  for  persecuted  and  sequestered  minis- 
ters of  the  Church  of  England,  whereof  divers  are  in  prison.  A  sad 
day  !  The  Church  now  in  dens  and  caves  of  the  earth."  One  of  the 
clergy  reduced  to  this  condition,  William  Bartlett,  wrote  from  prison  : 

"  I  have  been  Vicar  of  Tetminster  39  years,  time  enough  to  know  me  inside  and 
outside ;  but  notwithstanding  that,  all  my  possessions  are  taken  from  me  which 
were  my  father's  patrimony,  whereunto  God  hath  called  me,  and  wherein  I  was 
settled  by  the  laws  of  the  kingdom.  But,  howsoever,  I  am  an  undone  man,  and 
how  to  recover  myself  I  know  not,  for  want  of  means." 

8.  Sufferings  of  the  Laity.— The  edict  of  November  1655 
attacked  more  than  the  clergy.  The  faithful  laity  also,  known  far 
their  loyalty  to  Church  and  Realm,  were  made  to  feel  the  oppression. 
And  that  not  merely  by  the  loss  of  their  spiritual  advisers,  but  by 
a  very  considerable  seizure  of  their  property.  One-tenth  was 
demanded  of  all  the  royalists'  revenues  throughout  England.  The 
land  had  been  put  under  a  number  of  major-generals,  who  enforced 
the  payment ;  and  all  meetings,  social  as  well  as  public  ones,  at 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY. 


150 


which  the  Protector's  proceedings  might  be  discussed,  were  dis- 
allowed.    This  was  stated  to  be  because  some   West  of    England 
gentry  had  conspired  to  overthrow  his  rule.      "  It  was  made  a  crime 
for  a  child  to  read  by  the  bedside  of  a  sick  parent  one  of  those 
beautiful  collects  which  had  soothed  the  griefs  of  forty  generations  of 
Christians."   (Macaulay.)   -'An  ever-abiding  sense  of  wrong  stirred  up 
the  indignation  of  men  who  had  looked  back  with  regret  to  the  Church 
observances  which  had  been  familiar  to  them  in  youth.     Extempore 
prayer  offered  abundant  facilities  for  the  display  of  folly  and  pro- 
fanity as  well  as  of  piety,  and  there  were  thousands  who  contrasted  the 
tone  and  language  of  the  new  ministers  with  the  measured  devotion  of 
the  Book  of  Common  Prayer, altogether  to  the  advantage  of  the  latter. 
Church  and  king,  the  old  religious  forms  and  the  old  political  institu- 
tions,  came  to  be  inextricably 
fused  together  in  their  minds; 
mingled  with  a  vague  and  inar- 
ticulate sense  of  wrong  being  done 
to  England  by  the  openly  avowed 
attempt  to  drive  her  by  force  when 
argument  made  no  impression ' 
{Gardintr).  Jo h n  Evelyn,  a  gen- 
tleman of  position  and  refinement, 
kept  a  diary  of  the  time  which 
tells  a  sad  tale  of  the  ill-treatment 
put    upon    the     Church    party. 
Against  Dec.  25. 1633  (being  also 
a     Sunday),     he     wrote  : — '  No 
churches  or  public  assembly.     I 
was  fain  to  pass  the  devotions  of 
that  blessed  day  with  my  family 
at   home.'      In   Sept.,   1655.   he 
wrote:— 'On  Sunday  afternoon 
I  frequently  stayed  at  home  to 
catechise  and  instruct  my  family; 
those  exercises  universally  ceas- 
ing in  the  parish  churches,  so  as  JOHX   EVELYX. 
people  had  no  principles,  and  grew  very  ignorant  of  even  the  common 
points  of  Christianity ;  all  devotion  being  now  placed  in  hearing  ser- 
mons and  discoursesof  speculative  and  notional  things.'  After  the  edict, 
against  Dec.  25,  1655,  he  wrote  ; — '  There  was  no  more  notice  taken 
of  Christmas  day  in  churches.     I  went  to  London  when  Dr.  Wild 
preached  the  funeral  sermon  of  preaching,  this  being  the  last  day, 
after  which  Cromwell's  Proclamation  was  to  take  place,  that  none  of 
the  Church  of  England  should  dare  either  to  preach  or  administer 
Sacraments,  teach  schools,  &c.,  on  paine  of  imprisonment  or  exile. 
So  this  was  the  mournfullest'day  that  in  my  life  I  had  seen.  .  .  .  The 
Lord  Jesus  pity  our  distressed  Church,  and  bring  back  the  captivity 


160  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    0A 

of  Zion.'  The  same  writer,  against  August  3,  in  the  next  year 
testifies  : — '  The  parish  churches  were  filled  with  sectaries  of  all  sorts, 
blasphemous  and  ignorant  mechanics  usurping  the  pulpits  every- 
where ;'  and  when  on  Christmas  Day,  in  1657,  Evelyn  and  others 
rentured  to  attend  a  celebration,  the  chapel  was  surrounded  by 
soldiers,  who  leyelled  their  muskets  at  the  communicants,  '  as  if  they 
would  have  thot  ut  at  the  altar,'  and  afterwards  took  the  whole 
congregation  prisoners.  "  All  that  the  State  could  do  to  crush  the 
life  out  of  the  Church  was  done,  but  that  all  was  really  nothing. 
Never  was  her  life  more  vigorous  than  when  she  was  spoken  and 
thought  of  as  dead  and  buried,  never  was  her  liturgy  more  venerated 
than  when  it  was  proscribed,  never  were  her  faithful  ministers  more 
firmly  attached  to  her  principles  than  when  the  profession  of  those 
principles  entailed  the  ruin  of  every  worldly  prospect."1  All  looked 
forward  hopefully  to  better  times,  and  with  good  reason ;  for  friends 
were  to  be  found,  even  in  the  domestic  circle  of  the  Lord  Protector. 

9.  Royalist  Reaction. — Anything  that  has  been  written 
in  the  foregoing  pages  is  not  intended  to  throw  doubt  upon 
Oliver  Cromwell's  personal  piety  or  genius.  No  man  has  been 
more  execrated,  and  in  late  years  efforts  have  been  made  to 
set  him  forth  as  a  saint.  Neither  plan  is  necessary  or  accu- 
rate. His  military  prowess  and  statesmanship  which  regained  for 
England  the  prominence  among  European  nations  forfeited  by 
James  I.,  and  established  social  tranquility  after  the  civil  wars,  is 
acknowledged  by  all  ;  but  these  pages  have  to  deal  with  home 
ecclesiastical  affairs,  in  which  he  does  not  shine  with  undimmed 
lustre.  He  died  Sept.  3,  1658,  and  his  last  hours  were  spent  in 
prayer.  His  son  Richard  succeeded  him  in  the  protectorate;  but  the 
army,  ruled  by  Oliver  with  such  success,  despised  the  new  comer, 
and  recalled  the  '  Rump '  of  the  long  Parliament  which  his  father 
had  arbitrarily  expelled.  This  at  once  restored  the  Covenanters'  oath 
in  place  of  the  '  Engagement.'  No  relief  came  to  the  Church  by  that 
change.  We  read  in  Evelyn's  diary  against  May  19,  1559,  '  The 
nation  was  now  in  extreme  confusion  and  unsettled,  between  the 
armies  and  the  sectaries,  the  poor  Church  of  England  breathing  as  it 
were  her  last,  so  sad  a  face  of  things  overspread  us.'  The  '  Rump ' 
•oon  quarrelled  with  the  army,  and  was  again  expelled;  this  time  by 
General  Lambert,  who  had  been  deprived  of  his  command  for  re- 
fuging to  take  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  Cromwell,  but  who  was  now 
accepted  by  the  army  in  London  as  its  leader.  But  the  nation  was 
weary  of  being  governed  by  fanatical  sectaries  who  brought  nothing 
but  anarchy  in  their  train.  All  longed  for  an  orderly  and  settled 
government,  and  when  Evelyn  published  his  bold  apology  for  the 
king  it  received  general  approbation.  But  it  was  General  Monk,  who 
had  for  a  long  time  governed  Scotland  as  Cromwell's  second,  that 

1  Canon  Overton'i  Life  in  the  Englis h  Church,  1660— 1714.    Longmans  14j, 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY.  161 

succeeded  in  leading  the  nation  to  the  desired  goal  without  bloodshed. 

He  was  a  taciturn  man,  and  an  accomplished  dissembler;  and  as  he 

proceeded  to  London  he  could  see  that  all  men  were  ready  to  accept 

his  decision   though   they  hoped  he   would  declare  for  '  the  king.' 

Having  felt  the  pulse  of  England,  and  received  all  the  petitions 

that  were  presented   on  his  line  of  march,  he  made  up  his  mind 

to  declare  for  a  free  parliament  (Feb.  11.  1660).     But  he  would  not 

do  anything  illegally.      Not  only  the   '  Rump.'  but  all  the  surviving 

and  accessible   members  of   the   Long   Parliament  which   Colonel 

Pride  had  expelled  twelve  years  before,  were  called  together  ;  and 

induced  to  agree  to  its  own  dissolution  according  to  the  statute, 

having  previously  issued  writs  for  a  general  election.    (March  16, 

1660.)     Strictly  speaking,  a  Parliament  can  only  be  called  together 

by  the  king's  consent ;  so  the  newly  elected  representatives  of  the 

nation  formed  what  is  called  a  '  Convention.'     It  met  April  25,  1660. 

In  the  meantime  (April   14)  Charles  II.  had  issued  a  Declaration 

from  Breda  in  which  he  promised  a  general  amnesty  to  all  save  those 

whom  Parliament   should  except,  and  liberty  of  conscience  to  all 

whose  religious  convictions  were  not  likely  to  disturb  the  peace  of 

the  realm  ;    he  also  agreed  that  Parliament  should  determine   the 

conflicting  claims  of  past  and  present  holders  of  landed  estates,  and 

that  the  army  should  receive  its  arrears  of  pay.     The  Presbyterians 

were  instrumental  in  obtaining  this  Declaration,  acd  when  it  was 

announced  (May  1)  that  Sir  John  Granville  had  brought  letters  from 

Charles — one  for   the  Lords  who  had  resumed  their  seats,  one  for 

the  Commons,  one   for  General  Monk,  and  another  for  the   Lord 

Mayor  and  Corporation  of  London — offering  himself  to  their  dutiful 

acceptance  and  acknowledgment  as  king  ;  the  news  was  received 

with  marvellous  enthusiasm.     The  national  will  was  felt  and  obeyed 

at  a  time  when  none  dared  utter  it  ;  and  Charles   II.  was   invited 

unconditionally  from  exile  to  his  paternal  throne  by  a  people  who 

desired,  above  all  else,  a  restoration  of  those  institutions  under  which 

England  had  been  prosperous  and  happy. 


CHAPTER     XXIV.    (A.D.  1660-1685). 
RESTORATION  OF  CHURCH  AND  REALM. 

'•  He  comes  with  rapture  greeted,  and  caressed 
With  frau tie  lovu— his  kingdom  to  resraiu. 
*  »  *  «  * 

Nor  shall  the  eternal  roll  of  praise  reject 

Those  unconforming;  whom  cue  rigorous  day 

Drives  from  their  cures,  a  voluntary  prey 

To  poverty,  and  grief,  and  disrespect.''— Wordsworth. 

1:  The  Return  of  the  King.— On  the  8th  of  May  Charles  II. 
was  proclaimed  King  amid  general  rejoicings.  On  the  25 th  he  landed 
at  Dover,  and  thence  proceeded  to  Canterbury.  Thus  the  Restoration 


162  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    0A 

•was  brought  about  without  bloodshed,  '  and  by  that  very  army  which 
Tebellad  against  him.  The  eagerness  of  men,  women  and  children  to 
'See  his  majesty  and  kiss  his  hands  was  so  great,  that  he  had  scarce 
.leisure  to  eat  for  some  days.'  May  28th  was  a  Sunday,  and  there  was 
a.  grand  service  in  the  cathedral ;  than  which  no  more  fitting  place 
•could  have  been  chosen  for  the  formal  and  public  restoration  of  the 
'Prayer-book.  The  next  day  there  was  a  triumphal  progress  to  Lon- 
don, Whitehall  being  reached  about  9  p.m.  That  night  was  made  an 
artificial  day  by  innumerable  bonfires,  while  the  wealthy  erected 
wine  fountains  everywhere.  Englishmen  had  greatly  missed  their 
dances  round  the  maypole,  their  theatres,  Church  ales,  and  other 
modes  of  recreation  in  which  they  had  formerly  delighted  ;  and  they 
now  revolted  from  the  hypocrisy  that  had  accompanied  Puritan 
restrictions  by  an  intemperate  enjoyment  of  all  pleasures  at  once.  In 
the  unlimited  exuberance  of  their  delight  the  rejoicings  were 
marred  by  disorderly  mirth  and  profligacy.  This  was  most  deplorable, 
though  not  altogether  unexpected  ;  for  proclamations  had  been  issued 
against  excesses.  No  one  could  doubt  the  feeling  of  the  nation 
which  had  so  long  been  ruled  by  a  small  and  determined  minority. 
The  king  declared  that  it  must  have  been  his  own  fault  that  he  had 
stayed  away  so  long,  for  he  met  no  one  who  did  not  protest  that  his 
return  had  always  been  wished  for.  The  Puritans  were  only  too  glad 
to  be  allowed  to  go  into  retirement.  John  Milton,  e.g.,  wrote : — 

"This  day  a  solemn  feast  the  people  hold 
To  Dagon,  their  sea-idol,  and  forbid 
Laborious  works.    Unwillingly  this  rest 
Their  superstition  leaves  me;  hence,  with  leave, 
Retiring  from  the  popular  noise,  I  seek 
This  unfrequented  place  to  find  some  ease. 

In  all  difficulties  and  dangers  the  Church  and  the  Crown  had 
shared  a  common  lot ;  they  had  suffered  together  in  exile,  imprison- 
ment and  death ;  it  was  only  natural  that  they  should  be  partners  in 
the  glad  rejoicings  of  the  Restoration.  The  sequestered  clergy  who 
were  still  alive,  about  a  thousand  in  number,  at  once  returned  to 
their  parishes  ;  and  everywhere  the  ancient  Liturgy  was  heard  again. 
The  nine  surviving  bishops  resumed  control  of  their  dioceses,  and 
took  thair  old  places  in  the  House  of  Peers.  One  of  the  bishops, 
Wren  of  Ely,  had  been  kept  as  a  prisoner  in  the  Tower  without 
trial  nearly  twenty  years.  Steps  were  then  taken  to  fill  the  vacant 
sees  with  divines  who  had  been  conspicuous  for  their  devotion  to 
their  Church  and  king  during  adversity  ;  Bishop  Juxon,  who  had 
ministered  to  Charles  I.  in  his  last  moments,  taking  the  place  of  Laud 
as  primate.  After  the '  Convention  Parliament'  had  voted  the  necessary 
funds  for  paying  arrears  to  the  soldiers,  the  army  was  disbanded ; 
two  or  three  regiments  only  being  retained  as  a  guard  for  the  king. 
An  'Act  of  Indemnity  and  Oblivion '  was  passed  by  which  all,  except 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  163 

the  regicides,  were  pardoned  for  complicity  in  the  late  rebellion. 
At  the  close  of  the  year  the  Convention  Parliament  was  dissolved. 
By  the  following  May  a  new  Parliament,  and  a  new  Convocation,  had 
been  elected  ;  which  proved  strongly  royalist  and  true  to  Church 
principles.  It  was  called  the  Cavalier  Parliament;  because  most  of 
the  members  belonged  to  families  who  had  all  along  sided  with 
the  king.  It  was  consequently  opposed  most  strongly  to  Puritanism 
in  any  form,  and  it  would  not  have  been  surprising  had  they  used 
their  power  to  revenge  themselves  upon  their  late  enemies.  That 
they  proceeded  to  pass  measures  which  bore  hardly  upon  those  who 
had  preceded  them  in  the  government  is  true,  but  it  is  remarkable 
how  very  little  grudge  they  seemed  to  bear.  As  we  noticed  when 
dealing  with  the  Elizabethan  reaction,  nothing  was  done  vindictively 
or  in  a  hurry.  Thousands  of  Puritan  ministers  were  allowed  to  remain 
unmolested  in  the  benefices  to  which  they  had  been  illegally  pre- 
sented, until  an  ecclesiastical  settlement  was  determined  on,  and  no 
repressive  legislation  was  enacted  unless  past  events  had  proved 
that  the  safety  of  the  nation  demanded  it.  The  Church  party  grew 
stronger  every  day,  and  less  inclined  for  compromise  ;  but  it  was 
willing  that  Puritan  ministers  should  be  admitted  within  the  Church 
if  they  would  accept  Episcopal  ordination  and  use  the  ancient 
service  book  loyally.  Three  of  the  most  eminent,  Messrs.  Baxter. 
Calamy.  and  Reynolds,  were  offered  bishoprics,  although  only  the 
last  named  accepted  the  honour  ;  and  nine  others  became  chaplains 
to  the  king.  The  peculiar  troubles  which  the  land  had  lately  under- 
gone would  have  made  it  impossible  to  adjust  religious  differences 
without  offending  some  one  ;  but  it  was  the  extravagant  demands 
>f  the  Puritans  that  really  prevented  conciliation. 

2.  The  Savoy  Conference.— In  the  Declaration  of  Breda 
Charles  had  declared  himself  ready  to  consent  to  any  act  of  Parlia- 
ment which  should  grant  toleration  to  Nonconformists  ;  and  because 
such  toleration  was  not  allowed  the  king  has  been  accused  of 
duplicity ;  whereas  neither  the  Convention  Parliament  nor  the 
Cavalier  Parliament  were  disposed  to  offer  such  a  Bill  to  him  for 
his  acceptance.  The  nation  and  the  nation's  representatives  had 
declared  against  toleration  of  the  sectaries  ;  and  in  favour  of  unifor- 
mity according  to  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer  that  had  been  so  long 
proscribed  by  Puritans.  The  king  recognised  that  the  Presbyterians 
had  helped  to  bring  about  his  restoration,  and  was  desirous  of  con- 
tenting them  ;  but  he  also  felt  that  something  was  owing  to  the 
Romanists,  who  had  stood  by  him  when  the  Presbyterians  fought 
against  him,  and  he  wished  that  whatever  religious  liberty  might  be 
agreed  upon  the  Romanists  should  share  in  it.  But  the  Puritans 
were  all  averse  to  sharing  toleration  with  the  Romanists  ;  and  would 
not  accept  any  declaration  of  religious  liberty  in  which  they  were 
mentioned  in  company.  As  Parliament  was  not  in  the  mood  for 


164 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


toleration,  and  desired  uniformity  before  all  else,  the  Puritans  endea- 
voured to  obtain  such  concessions  as  would  satisfy  all  their  former 
objections  to  the  Church.     The  king  had  told  them  to  draw  up  a  list 
of  difficulties  which  stood  in  the  way  of  peace  and  unity  ;  whereupon 
they  drew  up  a  long  catalogue  of  objections  to  the  doctrine,  discipline, 
formularies,  ceremonies  and  orders  of  the  Church  which  entirely 
defeated  their   object  ;   because   if  their  demands  had  been   con- 
ceded the  Catholic  and  apostolic  character  of  the  Church  of  England, 
to  maintain  which  its  members  had  endured  suffering,  imprisonment, 
exile   and   death,  would   have  been  entirely   overthrown.     As  the 
Church  was  now  in  the 
ascendant,  with  the  na- 
tion at  its  back,  it  may 
be  doubted  whether  the 
Puritans    desired   union 
on  any  terms,  for  they 
must  have    known  that 
the  bishops   and  clergy 
would  never  have  agreed 
to       such      concessions. 
However    a    conference 
was    arranged     by    the 
king,  to  be  held  at  the 
palace  of  the  Savoy,  with 
twenty -one  disputants  on 
either  side  to  debate  the 
differences.  It  met  April 
15, 1661 .  High »p  Sheldon 
was  the    leader   of   the 
Church  party,  and  Rich- 
ard Baxter  that  of  the 
Presbyterians.  As  at  the 
Hampton  Court  Confer- 
ence,   the    Prayer-book 
was    made    the,   battle 
ground  :   the  noble  Lit- 
urgy that  contained  the  forms  of  devotion  by  which  thirty  generations 
of  Englishmen  had  offered  public  service  to  the  Creator,  that  had 
been  translated  into  the  English  tongue  and   compiled  with  much 
labour  and  loving  care  over  a   hundred   years  before   the   Savoy 
Conference  had  met.     No  wonder  that,  speaking  in   the  name  of 
his  party,  Bishop  Sheldon  should  say  that  the  Church  of  England 
was  perfectly  satisfied  with  it,  and  did  not  wish  for  changes ;  although 
the  bishops  were  ready  to  examine  any  written  statements   which 
Mr.  Baxter  and  his  friends  might  desire  to  put  before  the  Conference 
in  the  way  of  suggested  additions  or  alterations.     This  proposal  was 
accepted,  and  in  a  fortnight  Mr.  Baxter  produced  a  reformed  liturgy 


THE    OLD    SAVOY    PALACE. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  165 

of  his  own  composition,  which  he  desired  might  be  used  as  an  alter- 
native to  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer  by  any  ministers  who  did  not 
see  their  way  to  use  the  bid  English  Prayer-book.  His  colleagues 
were  far  less  hasty,  but  he  urged  them  on  to  draw  up  a  paper  of 
objections,  which  they  presented  on  May  4.  The  bishops  defended 
the  Liturgy  from  these  attacks,  but  offered  a  few  concessions  touch- 
ing phraseology  and  ceremonial,  to  which  Mr.  Baxter  replied.  The 
Conference  concluded  without  having  arrived  at  any  determination 
on  the  points  at  issue.  •  All  were  agreed.'  it  was  reported  to  the 
kin?,  '  that  unity  and  peace  were  ends  to  be  desired  ;  as  to  the 
means,  they  could  not  come  to  any  harmony. 

3.  The  Revised  Liturgy. — While  the  disputants  were  wrangling 
at  the  Savoy,  the  Cavalier  Parliament  had  met  ;  and  on  June  29  a 
bill  was  introduced  to  compel  the  uniform  use  of  the  second  Prayer- 
book  of  Edward  VI.  (see  page  71),  which  passed  the  House  of 
Commons  July  9.  The  bill  was  sent  up  to  the  Lords  the  following 
day.  but  no  notice  was  taken  of  it  there  until  the  winter.  The  king, 
in  the  meantime,  had  commissioned  several  bishops  and  divines  to 
review  the  Prayer-book,  with  a  view  of  meeting  some  of  the  Puritan 
objections.  As  the  result  of  their  deliberations,  letters  of  business 
were  issued  to  the  Convocations  of  Canterbury  and  York  (October 
and  November)  empowering  them  to  make  such  additions  and 
alterations  to  the  Prayer-book  as  should  seem  meet  and  convenient. 
This  was  done,  and  on  Dec.  20  all  the  members  of  both  houses 
of  Convocation  subscribed  the  amended  book  and  presented  it  to  the 
king  ;  with  some  services  for  use  upon  special  occasions.  All  which  the 
king,  privy  council,  ami  lawyers  examined,  to  see  that  nothing  illegal 
was  contained  in  them.  The  council  kept  the  revised  book  from 
December  20  to  February  25.  1662.  when  it  was  sent  to  the  house  of 
Lords  with  a  letter  of  approval  from  the  king.  The  House  of  Lords 
did  not  consider  it  until  March  13.  After  four  days'  discussion  they 
agreed  that  the  new  '  Act  of  Uniformity  '  should  refer  to  this  revised 
book,  and  not  to  the  second  book  of  Edward  VI.  On  April  10  the  Act 
of  Uniformity  was  returned  to  the  Commons,  who  asked  to  see  the 
original  folio  copy  in  which  the  alterations  of  Convocation  had  been 
written,  so  that  they  might  more  easily  judge  of  the  changes  made. 
The  Commons  agreed  to  accept  the  amended  book  ;  and  the  Act  of 
Uniformity  by  which  all  incumbents  were  to  use  it  on  and  after 
August  24  received  the  royal  assent.  May  19, 1662.  Some  600  changes 
were  made  altogether,  mostly  of  a  minor  character,  such  as  the 
substitution  of  moderu  for  obsolete  words,  and  the  substitution  of  the 
1611  translation  of  most  extracts  from  Scripture.  A  special  service 
for  the  Baptism  of  Adults  was  added  ;  because  during  the  Common- 
wealth, and  owing  to  '  the  growth  of  Anabaptism.'  large  numbers  had 
grown  up  from  infancy  without  admission  to  the  Saviour's  fold. 
It  was  thought  that  this  service  though  at  first  drawn  up  for  tea- 


166  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES  ON 

porary  use  in  England,  might  be  '  useful  for  the  baptising  of  natives 
in  our  plantations,  and  others  converted  to  the  Faith. l  Now  that  a 
decision  had  been  arrived  at,  as  to  the  limits  beyond  which  Church- 
men could  not  go,  the  Puritan  incumbents  who  had  been  intruded 
during  the  Commonwealth  were  told  that  they  must  renounce  the 
Covenant,  accept  ordination  and  pay  canonical  obedience,  subscribe 
the  Articles  and  use  the  Prayer-book,  if  they  wished  to  continue  in 
their  benefices.  Those  who  conformed  were  not  removed,  and  they 
were  the  greater  number.  It  was  expected  that  many  of  the 
intruded  incumbents  would  decline  to  agree  to  the  change ;  and 
altogether  about  1,800  were  removed  after  the  three  months'  notice 
had  expired  ;2  but  the  fact  that  nearly  6,000  were  content  to  accept 
the  conditions,  and  remain  in  possession,  may  be  taken  as  proof 
that  the  points  of  agreement  between  men,  even  at  that  time,  were 
far  more  than  the  points  of  difference.  Although  everybody  knew 
that  there  would  be  a  proportion  of  ministers  who,  on  account  of 
their  training  or  political  partisanship,  would  reject  any  concessions 
that  might  be  made  ;  it  is  none  the  less  to  be  regretted  that  so  many 
felt  themselves  unable  to  comply.  It  is  doubly  to  be  regretted, 
because  after  their  refusal  they  became  the  founders  of  modern 
Dissenting  bodies.  On  the  other  hand  its  loyal  use  by  subsequent 
generations  for  over  200  years  shews  that  the  hope  of  the  Restora- 
tion reviewers  has  been  realized  : — '  that  what  is  here  presented,  and 
hath  been  by  the  Convocations  of  both  provinces  with  great  diligence 
examined  and  approved,  will  be  also  well  accepted  and  approved  by 
all  sober,  peaceable,  and  truly  conscientious  sons  of  the  Church  of 
England.'  Several  proposals  have  since  been  made  to  alter  and 
adapt  the  Liturgy  as  so  revised,  but  they  have  come  to  nothing  at 
present,  and  with  the  sole  exception  of  the  revised  list  of  lessons 
adopted  by  Convocation  in  1871,  and  legalised  in  1872  by  Parlia- 
ment, there  has  been  no  alteration  in  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer 
since  1662.  The  occasional  services  for  special  days  were  only 
bound  up  with  the  Prayer-book  for  the  sake  of  convenience.  Inas- 
much as  the  Prayer-book  is  now  the  common  possession  of  all 
members  of  the  Anglican  communion,  revision  by  any  branch  might 
so  seriously  affect  other  portions,  that  alterations  are  discountenanced. 

4.  Repressive  Legislation. — It  has  sometimes  been  stated 
that  the  1.800  nonconforming  ministers  were  very  harshly  treated,  and 
that  an  indecent  haste  was  made  to  rush  repressive  and  vindictive 
measures  through  Parliament.  This  is  distinctly  untrue.  A  com- 
parison of  the  dates  in  the  foregoing  section  will  show  that  the  Act 
of  Uniformity  was  nearly  a  year  in  passing,  and  that  it  did  not  come 
into  force  until  two  years  after  the  Restoration.  Every  sensible 
person  must  have  known  that  some  such  measures  would  have  been 

1  For  details  of  the  changes  the  reader  is  referred  to  the  Prayer-book  histories 
mentioned  on  page  66.  2  Neal,  Hi»t.  Purit.,  vol.  Ill,  p.  35,  and  IV,  p.  339. 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY. 


167 


taken  ;  and  most  men  of  that  time  were  aware  that  the  Act  of 
Uniformity  did  no  more  than  restore  things  to  the  position  in  which 
they  were  on  the  accession  of  Charles  I.  The  Act  was  a  much  milder 
one  than  that  of  the  Long  Parliament  which  mercilessly  expelled  all 
clergy  from  their  rightful  benefices  who  would  not  perjure  them- 
selves by  taking  the  Covenanter's  oath.  It  was  not  until  1664  that 
the  Conventicle  Act  was  passed  by  which  all  unauthorized  assemblies 
for  religious  purposes  were  visited  with  fines  and  imprisonments. 
But  it  was  not  passed  until  there  had  been  a  rising  against  the 
Government  by  some  fanatical  sectaries,  which  gave  occasion  for  the 
excuse  that  Xonconformist  meetings  were  sometimes  used  to  promote 
rebellion,  and  that  therefore  their  suppression  was  needed  for  the 
safety  of  the  Realm.  Here,  too.  it  might  be  urged  that  the  Con- 
venticle Acts  of  1664  and  1670  were  much  less  severe  than  those 


ELSTOW  CHURCH  (see  rifft  page). 

which  the  Commonwealth  had  produced  against  the  Royalists, 
because  whereas  Puritans  were  now  permitted  to  have  five  strangers 
join  in  their  family  worship,  Churchmen  then  were  not  allowed  to 
have  any  visitors  at  all.  It  seems  very  hard  when  we  hear  that  an 
Act  was  passed,  in  the  autumn  of  1665,  which  forbade  ministers 
settling  within  five  miles  of  a  corporate  town  where  they  had  for- 
merly preached ;  but  when  we  find  that  it  was  only  enforced  upon 
those  who  refused  to  take  the  oath  of  Non-Resiitance  (which 
declared  that  taking  arms  against  the  king  or  endeavouring  to  sub- 
vert the  government  in  Church  or  Realm  was  unlawful)  its  virulence 
becomes  modified  to  our  minds  ;  and  this  statute  was  mildness  itself 
compared  with  the  powers  assumed  by  the  Cromwellians,  when  they 
sent  high-minded  clergymen  to  the  hulks,  and  kept  them  there.for 
no  other  offence  than  obedience  to  their  ordination  vows.  But  just 
as  we  could  not  approve  the  violence  of  Cromwell's,  so  neither  are 


168  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

we  desirous  of  excusing  the  intolerance  of  Charles's  Parliament,  eren 
though  the  latter  had  a  greater  show  of  reason.  It  is  possible  that 
the  desire  of  Charles  II.  to  exalt  his  prerogative  at  the  expense  of 
Parliament,  by  issuing  a  Declaration  of  Indulgence  to  Nonconformists 
on  the  ground  that  he  had  an  inherent  right  to  dispense  with  Statute 
laws,  may  have  increased  the  determination  of  the  legislature  to 
make  their  own  power  felt.  The  most  deplorable  acts  of  the  Restora- 
tion were  those  which  imposed  the  Sacramental  Test  upon  public 
officials.  To  make  the  Saviour's  ordinance  of  love  and  mercy  a 
means  of  over-reaching  political  opponents  was  hardly  the  way  to 
promote  peace  and  goodwill.  The  Presbyterians  and  Independents 
did  not  suffer  very  much  under  the  Conventicle  and  Five  Mile  Acts. 
The  chief  sufferers  were  Quakers  and  Anabaptists,  whom  the  Puri- 
tans themselves  had  treated  with  great  hardships  under  the  Common- 
wealth. The  best  known  example  of  the  persecuted  Nonconformists 
was  John  Banyan,  whose  Pilgrim's  Progress  has  made  his  name 
universally  beloved  throughout  the  world.  He  lived  at  Elstow  in 
Bedfordshire  where  there  may  still  be  seen  a  little  Norman  Church 
with  '  Early  English '  and  '  Perpendicular '  additions  ;  and  a  separate 
campanile  tower  wherein  the  rude  jests  of  the  ringers  filled  Bunyan's 
sensitive  soul  with  loathing.  He  married  when  a  very  wild  young 
man,  but  his  wife  persuaded  him  to  listen  to  the  ministrations  of  the 
minister  who  had  been  intruded  upon  Elstow  parish  durinj  the  Great 
Rebellion.  He  had  shouldered  a  musket  in  the  Independent  army, 
and  ultimately  broke  away  from  all  ecclesiastical  discipline  by  joining 
the  Anabaptists  and  preaching  on  his  own  account.  He  was  one  of 
the  first  to  be  imprisoned  after  the  Restoration,  and  for  twelve  years 
he  was  lodged  in  Bedford  jail.  His  incarceration  is  often  quoted 
by  modern  adversaries  of  the  Church  as  an  instance  of  intolerant 
clericalism  ;  but  they  overlook  the  circumstances  of  his  day.  The 
sufferings  and  privations  he  endured  after  his  schism  must  be  laid  to 
the  charge  of  the  civil  magistrates  ;  not  to  the  Church,  as  such. 
The  same  is  true  with  all  the  imprisoned  and  afflicted  Puritans. 
Because  private  and  unauthorised  meeting-houses  and  preachments 
were  thought  td  be  seditious,  and  the  late  troubles  were  fresh  in 
men's  minds,  special  efforts  were  taken  by  the  Government  to  restrict 
the  extemporaneous  utterances  of  irresponsible  enthusiasts,  whether 
in  devotional  exercises  or  pulpit  deliverances,  lest  they  should  be 
used  as  means  of  provoking  resistance  to  the  civil  authorities.  That 
there  was  no  intention  of  treating  the  loyal  Puritans  with  harshness 
is  clear  from  the  fact  that  an  attempt  was  made  in  1G<>7,  and  IMS,  to 
comprehend  Presbyterians  and  others  within  the  Church  of  England. 
The  scheme  had  a  good  intent  no  doubt,  but  it  was  impracticable.  It 
failed  because  it  could  only  be  made  feasible  by  whittling  away  all 
the  distinctive  Church"  teaching  from  the  Prayer-book.  Besides, 
those  for  whom  the  greatest  sacrifices  had  been  made,  would  have  been 
the  first  to  stir  up  strife  within  the  fold  by  their  eccentric  methods. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY. 


169 


5.  The  Great  Plague. — Two  terrible  calamities  followed  hard 
upon  the  Restoration.  The  first  was  a  terrible  infectious  disease 
which  broke  out  in  London  A.D.  ltJ65.  called  the  Plagve.  It  had 
visited  towns  and  villages  in  our  country  before  though  never  so 
badly  as  now.  Want  of  sanitary  precautions  had  much  to  do  with 
it ;  for  the  drainage  of  London  was  bad,  the  streets  were  narrow  and 
dirty,  and  the  habits  of  the  lower  classes  the  reverse  of  cleanly. 
Though  this  would  account  for  the  origin  of  the  disease,  and  im- 
perfect knowledge  of  medical  science  prevented  the  scouree  from 
being  cured  or 
progress  arrested, 
yet  the  people  of  that 
day  considered  it  to 
be  a  judgment  from 
heaven  upon  the  un- 
paralleled wicked- 
ness that  was  every- 
where apparent.  In- 
deed many  thought  it 
impious  to  attempt  to 
arrest  the  judgment 
of  God  by  trying  to 
cure  the  fearful  in- 
fliction. Orders  were 
given  to  shutupevery 
house  tli:it  WAS  in- 
fected, and  a  red 
: aimed  u:i 
the  street  d'.*ir ; 
which  were  inscribed 
the  words '  Lord  have 
mercy  upon  us.'  The 
summer  of  that  year 
was  unusually  hot, 
and  by  September 
the  epidemic  was 
raging  at  its  height ; 
7,000  and  S.OOU  being 


carried 
week. 


off      every 
It    was    im- 


PLAGUE   PITS,  FIXSBUBY. 

possible  to  bury  the  dead  in  the  usual  -way  nor  could  the  under- 
takers supply  coffins  quickly  enough.  Great  pits  were  dug  at 
Ald.rate.  MoorftVlds.  and  Finsbury  ;  eighteen  to  twenty  feet  deep 
and  of  immense  width  and  lens'tb,  into  which  the  corpses  were 
thrown.  Carts  went  regular  rounds  at  night,  preceded  by  a  man 
who  rang  a  bell  and  cried.  '  Bring  out  your  dead.'  Daniel  Defoe 
relates  that  he  had  the  curiosity  to  visit  a  plague  pit  by  night 


170  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    ON 

to  see  the  mode  of  interment ;  but  had  some  difficulty  in  obtain- 
ing admission  to  the  ground  because  of  the  danger  of  infection. 
"  I  told  the  sexton,"  he  writes,  "  I  had  been  pressed  in  my  mind  to 
go,  and  that  perhaps  it  might  be  an  instructing  sight,  that  might  not 
be  without  its  uses.  '  Nay,1  says  the  good  man,  '  if  you  will  venture 
on  that  score,  i'  the  name  of  God,  go  in  ;  for  depend  upon  it,  'twill 
be  a  sermon  to  you  ;  it  may  be  the  best  that  you  ever  heard  in  your 
life.  It  is  a  speaking  sight,  and  has  a  voice  with  it,  and  a  loud  one, 
to  call  us  to  repentance.'  "  Kich  people  fled  in  terror — leaving  the 
poor  to  shift  for  themselves.  A  few  noble-minded  men,  like  John 
Evelyn  and  the  Duke  of  Albemarle  remained,  as  the  representatives 
of  benevolence  and  order  ;  but  the  city  was  mostly  deserted,  and  grass 
grew  in  the  streets.  It  is  estimated  that  over  100,000  people  died  of 
the  scourge  during  that  fatal  summer  and  autumn.  By  winter  time 
the  plague  had  lessened  in  its  fury,  and  men  commenced  to  make 
good  the  dilapidations  of  the  city.  John  Evelyn  tells  us  that  he 
went  with  other  eminent  men  to  discuss  plans  for  completing  the 
restoration  of  Old  St.  Paul's  ;  (see  Vol.  I.,  p.  71)  which  Archbishop 
Laud  had  munificently  commenced.  The  spire  which  had  been  the 
highest  in  the  world  (48  feet  higher  than  the  great  pyramid)  had 
fallen  down  long  before  ;  and  they  agreed  to  replace  it  by  '  a  noble 
cupola.'  But  in  less  than  a  week  after  their  conference  a  second 
calamity  ensued  which  altered  all  their  schemes. 

6.  The  Fire  of  London.— On  September  2,  1666,  a  disastrous 
fire  broke  out  in  Pudding  Lane,  near  Fish  Street  Hill,  E.G., 
where  the  Monument  now  stands.  The  houses  of  Old  London  were 
built  chiefly  of  wood,  and  as  the  streets  were  very  narrow  the  con- 
flagration rapidly  spread.  A  steady  east  wind  carried  the  flames 
westward  until  London  was  wrapped  in  a  fire  so  great  and  continuous 
that  its  reflection  could  be  seen  for  several  days  and  forty  miles 
around.  John  Evelyn  wrote  :  (Sept.  3)  "  I  took  coach  with  my  wife 
and  son  and  went  to  the  bank  side  in  Southwark,  where  we  beheld  a 
dismal  spectacle,  the  whole  city  in  dreadful  flames  near  the  waterside  ; 
all  the  houses  from  the  bridge,  all  Thames  Street,  and  upwards 
towards  Cheapside,  were  now  consumed  .  .  .  .  so  as  it  burned 
both  in  breadth  and  length,  the  churches,  public  halls,  Exchange, 
hospitals,  monuments,  and  ornaments,  leaping  after  a  prodigious 
manner  from  house  to  house  and  street  to  street,  at  great  distances 
one  from  the  other  ;  for  the  heat,  with  a  long  set  of  fair  and  warm 
weather,  had  even  ignited  the  air,  and  prepared  the  materials  to  con- 
ceive the  fire,  which  devoured  after  an  incredible  manner  houses, 
furniture,  and  everything.  .  .  .  God  grant  mine  eyes  may  never 
behold  the  like,  who  aow  saw  above  10,000  houses  all  in  one  flame." 
Charles  II.  and  his  courtiers  superintended  the  pulling  down  and 
blowing  up  of  houses  to  make  broad  gaps  which  the  fire  could  not 
overleap  and  at  last,  after  four  days,  the  progress  of  the  fearful  fire 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY. 


171 


was  stayed.  Eighty -nine  churches  had  been  engulphed  in  the  vortex 
including  the  metropolitan  cathedral.  Evelyn  (who  was  charged  to 
stay  the  flames  northward  by  blowing  up  the  houses  near  Holborn) 
in  the  record  of  his  visit  to  the  ruins  on  the  4th  day  of  the  fire,  tells 
us  : — '  I  was  infinitely  concerned  to  find  that  goodly  church  of  i>t. 
Paule's  now  a  sad  ruine.  ...  It  was  astonishing  to  see  what 
immense  stones  the  heat  had  in  a  manner  calcined,  so  that  all  the 
ornaments,  columnes,  freezes,  capitals,  and  projectures  of  massive 
Portland  stone  flew  off,  even  to  the  very  roof,  where  a  sheet  of  lead 
covering  a  great  space  (no  less  than  6  acres  by  measure)  was  totally 
melted  ;  the  ruins  of  the  vaulted  roof  falling  broke  into  St.  Faith's 
which,  being  filled  with  the  magazines  of  books  belonging  to  the 


VIEW   OF   THE    FIRE    OF   LONDON   (FEOM   SOCTHWABK). 

stationers,  and  carried  thither  for  safety,  were  all  consumed,  burning 

for    a  week  following Thus    lay   in   ashes  that   most 

venerable  church,  one  of  the  most  ancient  pieces  of  early  piety  in  the 
Christian  world,  besides  near  100  more.' 

7.  A  Great  Architect. — In  spite  of  the  suffering  caused  by  the 
fire,  much  good  resulted  from  it  ;  for  it  destroyed  the  old  houses  that 
had  been  infected  by  the  plague,  and  the  city  was  newly  laid  out 
and  rebuilt  in  brick  or  stone  on  more  healthy  principles.  It  was  a 
splendid  opportunity  for  producing  a  great  architect,  and  one  was 


172 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    OA 


soon  found  ;  as  appears  by  the  following  note  in  Evelyn's  Diary, 
May  5,  1C67.  '  Came  to  dine  with  me  Sir  William  Fermor,  and  Sir 
Chrnftojiln-r  Wren,  bis  Majesty's  Architect  and  Surveyor,  now  build- 
ing the  Catheckal  of  St.  Paul,  ai  d  the  Column  in  memory  of  the 
city's  conflagration,  and  was  in  hand  with  the  building  of  50  parish 
churches.  A  wonderful  genius  had  this  incomparable  person.'  Only 
fifty-one  of  the  eighty-nine  churches  were  rebuilt,  the  other  thirty-five 
parishes  being  united  with  some  one  or  other  of  those  that  were. 
The  distress  occasioned  by  this  fire  was  only  of  a  temporary  character. 
Evelyn  says  he  did  not  hear  of  a  single  bankrupt.  There  was  a  vast 
amount  of  sympathy  excited  for  the  sufferers,  but  their  own  energy 
was  the  most  remarkable.  They  readily  taxed  themselves  for  many 
years  to  come,  with  charges  for  relaying  roads  and  rebuilding 
wharves  and  prisons,  by  agreeing  to  a  limited  impost  on  every  ton  of 
coals  brought  to  London 
— which  was  renewed  by 
Act  of  Parliament  from 
time  to  time — and  a  fifth 
portion  of  this  was  after- 
wards appropriated  to- 
wards the  rebuilding  of 
the  fifty-one  churches. 
Against  this  apparent  boon 
to  the  Church  must  be 
placed  the  fact  that  the 
sites  of  all  the  89  churches 
and  the  churchyards,  vicar- 
ages, etc..  belong!  rig  thereto 
were  vested  in  the  Lord 
Mayor  and  Aldermen  of 
the  city;  who  had  the  first 
claim  upon  such  portions 
of  Church  lands  as  were 
thought  requisite  for 
widening  and  'improving 
the  city  streets.  Some  of  THE  MONUMEVI,  B.C. 

the  churches  then  built  are  plain  to  ugliness.  In  very  few  cases 
was  there  any  provision  made  for  a  chancel,  the  chief  object  being  to 
make  the  buildings  as  little  like  pre- Reformation  churches  as  possible, 
and  more  like  the  temples  of  Greece  and  Old  Rome,  or  the  mosques 
of  Constantinople.  Although  there  is  much  to  commend  them  from 
an  utilitarian  standpoint.  Wren's  buildings  lack  cougruity.  They 
are  colossal  enough,  but  they  miss  the  romantic  and  poetic  grace 
by  which  the  mysteries  of  mediaeval  architecture  appeal  to  our 
feelings,  imaginations,  and  recollections.  There  had  been  so  little 
vhurch  building  for  150  years  that  very  few  people  knew  how 
to  build  at  all.  It  was  of  no  consequence  which  style  they  imitated 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  173 

and  the  oldest  style  would  look  most  like  a  new  creation.  Some  of  the 
city  churches  are  remarkable  for  the  carved  woodwork  of  Grinling 
Gibbons,  which  found  a  host  of  admirers  and  imitators.  Wren's  chief 
work  was  the  cathedral  church  of  London,  but  that  was  not  com- 
menced until  1675,  because  it  took  a  long  time  to  prepare  the  plans 
and  clear  away  the  ruins. 

8.  The  Church  in  Scotland.— It  was  not  to  be  expected  that 
the  restoration  of  Church  and  King,  which  had  proved  so  popular 
in  England,  would  be  withheld  from  the  sister  kingdoms ;  although 
their  conditions  were  so  very  different.     Charles  Il.liad  twice  signed 
the  Covenant  in  Scotland  in  Cromwell's  time  :  and  the  Presbyterians 
there,  naturally  hoping  that  he  would  be  true  to  it.  commissioned 
one  of  their  chief  ministers.  James  Sharp,  to  plead  the  cause  of 
Presbyterianism  at  Breda  and  in  London.     But  when  Sharp  found 
that  few  or  none  of  the  English  desired  Presbyterian  ism.  he  made  up 
his  mind  to  swim  with  the  stream,  and  recommend  the  restoration  of 
Episcopacy  in    Scotland.     The  Episcopate  re-founded  in  the  reign  of 
James  I.  had  died  out  during  the  Great  Rebellion,  so  that  it  was 
necessary  to  create  a  fresh  succession.     Sharp  was  appointed  to  the 
archbishopric  of  St.  Andrew's,  and  consecrated  with  three  others — 
Dr.    Hamilton.    Dr.    Leighton.   and    Dr.   Fairfoul — in    Westminster 
Abbey  (1661).     These  four  prelate.-;  then  proceeded  to  revive  all  the 
ancient  Scotch  dioceses,  and  consecrated  bishops  to  fill  them.    P: 
terians  beyond  the  Tweed  were  exceedingly  wrath  with  Sharp  for 
having  betrayed  their  cause  ;  and  he  resented  their  enmity  by  using 
his  power  as   chief  of  the  Scottish  council  to  enforce  the  repr- 

iiition  agams-t  Dissenteis.  Some  of  the  more  fanatical  of  the 
Scotch  Covenanters  broke  out  into  open  rebellion;  and  on  51 
M79.  while  driving  \\ith  his  daughters  across  a  lonely  moor.  Arch- 
bishop Sharp  was  murdered  by  a  Viand  of  Cameronians.  Had  Dr. 
Robert  Leighton.  a  saintly  and  a  learned  man,  been  made  archbishop 
of  St.  Andrew's  instead  of  Sharp,  the  subsequent  histoiy  of  the 
Episcopal  Church  in  Scotland  might  have  been  very  different.  At  a 
time  when  conciliation  and  compromise  were  of  the  first  necessity 
Sharp  adopted  harsh  and  arrogant  methods  ;  with  the  result  that  ten 
years  after  his  death  all  attempts  to  re-establish  Episcopacy  in 
Scotland  were  abandoned  (see  pages  202 — 4). 

9.  National  Dread  of  Romanism.— The  exile  of  the  Stuart 
princes  during  the  Commonwealth  caused  them  to  look  favourably 
upon    Romanism.      Their  mother,  ILnrhtta   Maria,   sister   of   the 
French  king,  had  obtained  hospitality  for  them  and  their  friends  in 
the  courts  of  Europe  ;  and  after  the  Restoration  common  gratitude 
demanded  that  such  obligations  should  be  in  some  sort  repaid  ;  but 
not  at  the  expense  of  the  National  Church.     Charles  II.  had  married 
a  Romanist  princess,  Catlarine  of  Brag  a  nza.  and  his  sister  Henrietta, 


174  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    OA 

who  was  married  to  the  Duke  of  Orleans,  introduced  some  notorious 
Frenchwomen  to  the  English  court ;  who  wielded  unbounded  in- 
fluence over  him.  In  1672  his  brother  Jamts,  duke  of  York  and  heir 
presumptive  to  the  throne  (for  Catharine  had  no  children),  publicly 
avowed  his  membership  with  the  Church  of  Rome  ;  and  it  was  feared 
that  King  Charles  might  follow  the  example.  Moreover,  the  Stuart 
princes  continued  to  cherish  the  hope  of  restoring  absolute  monarchy; 
and  although  Charles  1 1.  preferred  to  submit  to  his  Parliament,  rather 
than  set  out  on  his  travels  again,  he  was  continually  trying  to  obtain 
three  things  : — a  standing  army,  by  which  he  could  make  himself 
independent  of  the  legislature,  as  his  father  and  Oliver  Cromwell  had 
done  ;  money,  by  which  he  could  keep  up  a  profligate  court ;  and 
the  abolition  of  the  anti-papal  statutes,  which  prevented  his  Romanist 
friends  from  receiving  lucrative  positions  in  crown  patronage. 
The  Cavalier  Parliament  had  proved  so  desirous  of  pleasing  the  king 
that,  after  11  years,  Charles  began  to  think  he  could  do  as  he  pleased 
with  it ;  so  on  March  15, 1672,  he  took  advantage  of  a  parliamentary 
recess  to  publish  a  Declaration  of  Indulgence  to  all  who  did  not 
conform  to  the  Prayer-book.  By  this  the  Romanists  were  allowed  to 
worship  privately  after  their  desire,  and  Dissentprs  permitted  to 
conduct  services  both  publicly  and  privately.  This  was  chiefly  in- 
tended as  a  means  by  which  Charles  might  appoint  Romanists  to 
naval  and  military  offices,  from  which  they  were  excluded  by  the  law. 
The  unchallenged  acceptance  of  such  a  declaration  would  be  equiva- 
lent to  an  acknowledgment  that  the  king  had  power  to  dispense  with 
Parliament ;  seeing  that  a  large  number  of  statutes  were  set  aside  by 
it  without  the  consent  of  the  estates  of  the  realm.  Great  dissatisfac- 
tion was  freely  expressed  by  the  people,  and  when  Charles  II.  joined 
France  in  the  war  against  Holland  (March  1672)  it  was  current 
gossip  that  most  of  the  officers  in  the  army  and  navy  were  Romanists. 
It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  leading  Dissenters  preferred  to  abide 
by  their  disabilities  rather  than  share  the  '  Indulgence '  with  the 
papal  party.  When  Parliament  reassembled,  the  document  was  at 
once  pronounced  unlawful.  Then  it  was  that  the  famous  Test  Act 
was  passed  (25  Car.  II.,  c.  2),  which  for  many  years  after  bore  hardly 
on  Romanists.  By  it  all  civil,  military,  and  naval  officers  were 
obliged  to  take  the  oath  of  allegiance  and  supremacy,  deny  the 
doctrine  of  transubstantiation,  and  receive  Holy  Communion 
according  to  the  rites  of  the  National  Church.  No  Romanist  could 
fulfil  these  conditions  ;  and  a  large  number  of  officers,  headed  by  the 
Duke  of  York  who  was  Lord  High  Admiral,  gave  up  their  posts.  So 
many  resigned  that  the  nation  became  alarmed  for  the  reformed 
faith,  and  the  fear  spread  to  the  legislature.  Members  of  Parliament 
then  began  to  take  sides,  and  to  be  called  contemptuous  names  by 
their  political  opponents.  On  one  side  were  those  who  thought  it 
wrong  to  resist  the  king's  prerogative,  and  they  were  stigmatised  as 
Tories  after  the  Irish  Romanist  banditti ;  and  on  the  other  «de 


ENGLISH    CHURCH  HISTORY.  175 

\vere  those  who  thought  that  it  would  be  allowable  to  take  up  arms 
in  defence  of  religious  and  civil  liberties — even  against  the  king — 
and  these  were  nicknamed  Whigs,  after  the  insurgent  Presbyterians 
of  Scotland.1  Lord  Shaftesbury  led  the  Whigs,  and  he  was  sup- 
ported by  all  the  anti-papal  members.  His  great  aim  was  to  prevent 
Prince  James  from  succeeding  to  the  Throne.  James  had  married  a 
daughter  of  Lord  Clarendon,  an  English  Churchwoman.  They  had 
two  children.  Mary  and  Anne,  who  were  brought  up  in  the  Church  of 
England.  In  1677  Mary  was  married  to  William,  Prince  of  Orange  ; 
and  subsequently  Anne  became  the  wife  of  Prince  George  of  Den- 
mark ;  both  staunch  upholders  of  '  Protestantism  '  in  its  most  extreme 
forms.  Lord  Shaftesbury  knew  that  he  must  set  up  a  claimant  to 
the  throne  instead  of  James,  and  he  strongly  supported  an  illegiti- 
mate son  of  Charles  II.,  known  as  the  Duke  of  Monmouth  ;  and  en- 
couraged rumours  that  the  king  was  secretly  married  to  Monmouth's 
mother,  who  was  a  woman  of  obscure  family.  There  were  many  persons 
opposed  to  Prince  James  who  liked  Monmouth  still  less  ;  and  these 
thought  that  the  Princess  Mary  and  the  Prince  of  Orange  should  be 
called  to  the  throne,  on  the  demise  of  Charles  without  legitimate  issue. 

10.  Popish  Plots.— About  this  time  (Oct,  1678)  the  country 
was  alarmed  by  a  reported  conspiracy  among  the  Jesuits  to  kill  King 
Charles  and  introduce  papal  authority.  This  fell  in  with  Shaftes- 
bury's  plans,  and  he  took  care  to  encourage  the  rumours.  The  author's 
name  was  Titus  Oates.  By  falsely  representing  himself  as  a  Romanist 
he  obtained  admission  into  the  society  of  Jesuits  ;  and  having  gained  a 
little  knowledge  of  their  designs,  to  establish  Romanism  in  England 
through  the  aid  of  the  French  and  English  courts,  he  proceeded  to 
invent  a  number  of  wild  stories  incriminating  very  many  innocent 
people;  who  were  allowed  by  Charles  and  James  to  suffer  the  extreme 
penalty  of  the  law,  in  order  to  draw  off  suspicion  from  themselves. 
The  nation  was  now  in  great  ferment,  and  Parliament  passed  a  still 
more  stringent  Test  Act  (30  Car.  II.,  c.  1)  by  which  Romanists  were 
excluded  from  sitting  in  either  house  of  Parliament.  Hitherto  the 
peers  had  not  been  liable  to  the  provisions  of  the  Supremacy  and 
Test  Acts.  By  two  votes  only  the  Lords  exempted  the  Duke  of  York 
from  the  new  statute,  but  public  opinion  was  so  strong  against  him 
that  he  had  to  leave  England  for  a  time.  It  is  probable  that  the 
pretended  discoveries  of  Titus  Oates  were  fabricated  from  beginning 
to  end  ;  but  there  certainly  was  a  deliberate  intention  on  the  part  of 
James  and  other  members  of  the  court  to  subvert  the  National 
Church  ;  and  there  were  as  certainly  secret  treaties  between 
Charles  II.  and  Louis  XIV.,  by  which  the  latter  kept  the  former  well 
supplied  with  money,  on  the  understanding  that  England  should 

1  These  party  names,  chosen  at  first  to  express  the  acme  of  derision  for  antago- 
nistic politicians,  have  since  been  accepted  as  honourable  designations,  although 
each  party  have  greatly  modified  their  opinions. 


176  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

not  go  to  war  against  France,  aud  that  Charles  should  become  a 
Komanist.  The  public  had  long  been  suspicious  of  some  such  secret 
arrangement,  but  did  not  know  for  certain  until  Louis  had  them 
disclosed  to  the  House  of  Commons.  The  secret  had  been  shared  by 
several  Romanist  peers,  and  also  by  a  cabinet  minister'named  Lord 
Danby;  and  these  were  impeached  forthwith.  To  save  his  confidants 
Charles  dissolved  the  Cavalier  Parliament  (Jan.  1679)  and  called 
another.  Shaftesbury  had  long  been  waiting  for  a  general  election, 
and  had  carefully  prepared  the  way  for  a  grand  anti-papal  demon- 
stration at  the  hustings,  by  fomenting  the  terror  that  Gates  had 
aroused.  An  overwhelming  majority  of  Whig  members  were  returned 
(March,  1679)  who  would  not  be  satisfied  with  anything  short  of  the 
exclusion  of  Prince  James  from  the  throne.  Charles  thereupon  dis- 
solved it.  and  called  another,  with  a  similar  result,  Oct.,  1679.  After 
seven  prorogations  in  the  hope  that  public  opinion  might  veer  round, 
Charles  allowed  the  new  Parliament  to  meet  for  the  despatch  of 
business  in  Oct.,  1680.  But  the  Exclusion  Bill  blocked  the  way. 
The  Commons  passed  it  but  the  Lords  did  not,  for  the  king  had  sent 
a  message  that  he  would  never  give  his  consent  if  it  were  passed. 
The  Commons  then  flatly  re?us?d  to  vote  supply,-and  Parliament  was 
again  dissolved.  Yet  another  Parliament  was  called  with  the  same 
result.  It  met  at  Oxford  in  March,  1681.  This  time  the  Whig  mem- 
bers came  attended  with  armed  retainers;  so  determined  were  they 
that  the  Exclusion  Bill,  for  which  they  had  been  thrice  returned, 
should  not  again  miscarry.  Charles  at  once  brought  down  his  guards, 
and  many  feared  that  civil  war  might  break  out  afresh.  The  king 
offered  as  a  compromise  that  William,  Prince  of  Orange,  the  husband 
of  the  Princess  Mary,  should  act  as  Regent  when  James  succeeded. 
But  Parliament  was  determined  upon  the  Exclusion  Bill,  so  Charles 
dissolved  it  in  despair  before  it  had  sat  a  fortnight,  and  did  not  call 
another  for  the  rest  of  his  reign.  All  the  time  the  Whigs  were  fight- 
ing over  this  matter  large  numbers  of  Romanists  were  being  put  to 
death  on  the  false  accusations  of  Gates  and  others,  who  found  profit 
and  popularity  in  becoming  informers ;  e.g.,  Titus  Gates  obtained  a 
pension  of  £1.200  a  year,  and  a  residence  at  Whitehall  close  to  the 
palace  of  the  king.  Charles  II.  did  not  attempt  to  save  the  accused 
persons,  although  his  sympathies  were  with  them  ;  for  he  rightly- 
judged  that  if  the  Whig  party  could  be  sufficiently  imbrued  with  the 
blood  of  innocent  persons,  public  sympathy  would  be  excited  for  the 
Romanists,  and  James  would  stand  more  chance.  The  most  noted 
victim  of  the  pretended  plot  was  Lord  Stafford,  who  was  tried  and 
executed  in  December,  1680.1  His  speech  to  the  multitudes  assemblsd 
to  see  him  beheaded,  in  which  he  declared  his  innocence,  was  res- 
ponded to  by  sympathetic  shouts  of  "  We  believe  you,  my  Lord  1 
God  bless  you,  my  Lord  ! "  From  that  time  the  public  discredited 

1  A  contemporary  report  of  the  trial  appears  in  Evelyn's  Diary,  an  in  valuable  record 
of  the  years  1641-17(5.— F   Vi  arne  &  Co.  2j. 


EXGLISH   CHURCH    HISTORY. 


177 


the  informers  of  the  popish  plot,  and  began  to  appreciate  the  king's 
reluctance  to  disinherit  his  brother.  When  the  fever  heat  of  the 
nation  had  somewhat  subsided,  and  his  popularity  returned,  Charles 
renewed  the  treaties  with  Louis  XIV. — in  order  to  provide  himself 
with  money  for  the  expenses  of  his  court  without  the  assistance  of 
Parliament.  A  counterblast  against  the  Whigs  was  then  invented 
by  the  Romanists,  and  Shaftesbury  fled  to  Holland.  The  Bye  Ilinixe 
Plot  to  murder  the  king  and  his  brother  on  their  way  from  Xewmarket 
to  London  was  also  charged  against  the  party  ;  Lord  Russell,  Algernon 
Sidney,  with  other  leading  Whigs,  being  executed  for  alleged  com- 
plicity, (1633)  although  the  charges  were  certainly  not  proven. 
After  that  the  king's  party  did  as  they  pleased.  The  Duke  of 
York  resumed  his  position  as  Admiral ;  and  it  became  cer- 
tain that  he  would  succeed  to  the  throne.  Charles  II.  was  seized 


WHITEHALL   (t*»lp.  CHARLES    II.). 

with  sudden  sickness,  and  died  Feb.  6,  1685.  Up  !o  the  last  his  real 
religious  convictions  were  unknown.  Archbishop  Bancroft  and  other 
prelates  were  in  attendance  during  his  last  hours  ;  and  Bishop  Ken 
pronounced  the  Church's  absolution  over  him,  after  receiving  an 
affirmative  reply  to  the  question,  •'  Sire,  are  you  sorry  for  the  sins 
you  have  committed  ? "  They  pressed  him  to  receive  the  Holy  Com- 
munion, but  he  evaded  their  suggestions.  It  was  afterwards  given 
out  that  a  Romish  priest  named  Huddlestone.  who  had  assisted  in 
the  escape  of  Charles  after  the  battle  of  Worcester,  had  secretly 
administered  the  last  rites  of  the  Roman  Church  to  h  m  during  the 
temporary  absence  of  the  courtiers.  It  is  now  considered  certain 
that  Charles  II.  had  been  a  Ron  inist  for  years  before  his  death. 


178 


ILLUSTRATED 


Ott 


11.  The  Church  in  Ireland. — The  Celtic  Irish  had  never 
willingly  emancipated  themselves  from  the  usurped  control  of  the 
papacy,  and  the  adherents  of  the  reformed  episcopate  consisted 
chiefly  of  the  decendants  of  Elizabethan  colonists.  When  Cromwell 
put  down  the  Irish  Rebellion,  many  of  the  poorer  people  were 
banished,  and  the  better  classes  compelled  to  emigrate  ;  their  lands 
and  possessions  being  divided  amongst  adventurers  who  had  furnished 
him  with  the  sinews  of  war.  Episcopacy  was  then  suppressed,  and 
its  place  taken  by  Independency  and  Presbyterianism.  At  the 
Restoration  the  Irish  bishops  who  had  survived  the  Commonwealth 
resumed  control  of  their  sees,  and  Jeremy  Taylor  was  appointed  to 
one  of  the  vacant  dioceses.  Puritan  ministers  who  subscribed  to  the 
Liturgy  and  Articles  under  the  Irish  Act  of  Uniformity  (1666)  were 
allowed  to  remain  undisturbed,  although  they  looked  with  great  dis- 
favour on  the  steps  that  were  taken  to  enforce  obedience  to  Episcopal 
rule.  The  Bible  and  Prajrer-book  were  translated  into  Irish  about 
the  same  time.  Had  it  not  been  for  political  troubles  much  might 
have  been  done  towards  healing  past  wounds,  and  joining  the 
scattered  bodies  of  Christians  into  an  harmonious  Church.  Charles 
II.  had  promised  the  Cromwellian  settlers  that  they  might  keep  the 
lands  they  hai  acquired1 ;  but  this  caused  disaffection  among  the 
native  gentry  who  had  fought  in  his  behalf,  and  stirred  them  up  to 
enmity  against  the  Puritan  party.  The  disaffection  increased  when 
James  II.  succeeded  to  the  English  throne  and  placed  Ireland  under 
the  rule  of  Lord  Tyrconnd.  Romanists  were  then  put  in  the  places 
of  all  civil  and  military  officers  who  were  unfavourable  to  the  King's 
religion  ;  benefices  and  sees  were  kept  vacant  with  the  intention  of 
presenting  them  to  Romanists  before  long  ;  while  Romish  priests 
were  allowed  to  collect  and  appropriate  the  revenues  of  tithes  and 
glebe  lands.  Under  all  these  circumstances  it  was  not  likely  that 
the  Church  should  prosper.  Indeed  the  Anglican  clergy  were 
subject  to  such  persecution,  under  Tyrconnel's  rule,  that  they  fled 
from  the  country  until  the  Prince  of  Orange  brought  them  back. 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY.  179 

CHAPTER    XXV.     (A.D.  1685-1690). 
THE    SEVEN   BISHOPS. 

A  voic«,  from  long-expecting  thousands  sent, 

Shatters  the  air,  and  troubles  tower  and  spire — 

For  justice  hath  absolved  the  innocent, 

And  tyranny  is  baulked  of  her  desire. 

Up.  down,  the  busy  Thames— rapid  as  fire 

Coursing  a  train  of  gunpowder — it  went, 

And  transport  finds  in  every  street  a  vent, 

Till  the  whole  city  rings  like  one  vast  choir." — Werdsivortk. 

1.  James    II.   and    the    Puritans.— Immediately  after  hia 
brother's  death  the  Duke  of  York  took  his  seat  at  the  council  board 
as   James   II.     He   at  once  gave  a  solemn  pledge  to   defend  and 
support  the  National  Church  ;  and  received  a  loyal  address  in  the 
name  of  the  clergy  from   the   bishops   who    were   at   court,   they 
believing  him  to  be  a  man  of  his  word.     But  he  took  the  earliest 
opportunity  of  demonstrating  that  he  did  not  intend  to  withhold  his 
allegiance  to  the  Church  of  Rome,  by  going  publicly  to  '  Mass.'    At 
his  coronation  Archbishop  Bancroft  consented  to  omit  the  English 
Communion  Service,  and  has  been  blamed  for  such  complacency. 
But  it  was  surely  better  for  him  to  have  done  so  than  to  have  allowed 
the  Sacrament  to  be  profaned,  by  insisting  upon  its  reception  by  one 
who  did  not  hesitate  to  express  his  contempt  for  it.     James  acknow- 
ledged freely  that  his  accession  was  due  to  the  loyalty  of  Church- 
men to  the  doctrine  of  hereditary  right,  but  made  no  secret  of  his 
aversion  to  the  Whigs  and  Puritans  who  had  tried  so  hard  to  exclude 
him  from  the  throne.     Very  soon  after  the  coronation  the  Duke  of 
Monmouth  attempted  an  armed  usurpation,  which  gave  James  an 
excuse  for  raising  an  army.     Monmouth  landed  at  Lyme  Regis,  in 
Dorset,  and  called  upon  the  Nonconformists  to  aid  his  pretensions. 
None  of  the  Whig  nobles  joined  his  cause,  but  many  agriculturists 
and  miners  of  the  West  of  England  flocked  to  the  standard  that  the 
young  ladies  of  Taunton  presented  to  him.     At  the  same  time  the 
Presbyterians  of  Scotland  had  fomented  a  rising  under  the  chief  of 
the  Campbells.    Both  these  rebellions  were  promptly  suppressed,  and 
most  vindictive  measures  taken  against  the  leaders.     In  the  west  of 
England  the  prisoners  of  war  were  hanged  by  scores  in  cold  blood, 
until  the  good  bishop  of  Bath  and  Wells  (Thomas  Ktii)  demanded 
that  the  victims  should  not  be  executed  without  trial.     His  good 
offices  did  not  avail  them  much,  for  Ch  iff- Justice  Jeffreys  was  sent 
down  to  try  them  ;  with  the  result  that  numbers  were  condemned 
to  death,  and  many  hundreds  more  mutilated,  imprisoned,  trans- 
ported and  enslaved.     Summary  vengeance  had  already  been  taken 
under  cover  of  the  law,  with  the  same  cruel  and  blasphemous  man 
for  judge,  upon  the  informers  of  the  popish  plots.     Titus  Gates  was 


G  2 


180 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


condemned  to  a  life-long  imprisonment,  with  periodical  floggings  of 
terrible  severity ;  but  he  bore  his  punishment  with  wonderful 
firmness,  and  lived  until  the  next  reign,  when  he  was  liberated  and 
again  pensioned.  The  Presbyterians  of  Scotland  and  England  had 
next  to  feel  the  enmity  of  James  II.  The  death  penalty  was  imposed, 
by  a  statute  of  the  Scottish  Parliament,  on  every  one  who  should 
preach  in  a  room  or  attend  an  open  air  conventicle  ;  and  the  accept- 
ance of  the  Covenant  was  made  high  treason.  The  existing  laws 
against  English  Nonconformists  also  were  strictly  enforced,  and  the 
first  to  feel  this  hardship  was  the  erstwhile  leader  of  the  Presbyterian 
party,  Richard  Baxter.  Our  picture  represents  him  standing  before 
Judge  Jeffreys,  to  answer  a  charge  of  sedition  for  reflecting  on  the 


THE  TRIAL   OF   KICHARD   BAXTEE. 

office  of  bishops.  He  admitted  that  he  had  spoken  sharply  about 
bishops  of  the  Church  of  Home,  but  claimed  that  he  had  always 
spoken  honourably  of  the  English  prelates,  and  incurred  the  censure 
of  dissenters  thereby.  And  this  was  shown  by  his  writings.  But  as 
the  time-serving  judge  had  instructions  to  silence  Baxter  the  counsel 
were  browbeaten,  the  defendant  insulted,  and  the  jury  intimidated 
until  an  adverse  verdict  was  obtained.  Baxter  was  thereupon  sen- 
tenced to  a  heavy  fine  ;  and  was  imprisoned  for  18  months  in  default. 

2.     Non-Resistance. — It  was  soon  found   that  no   one   could 
expect  favour  from  James  II.,  who  did  not  speak  respectfully  of  the 


ENGLISH    CHURCH  HISTORY.  181 

Church  of  Rome.  In  the  second  session  of  his  Parliament  (Nov. 
1685)  he  desired  that  the  Test  Act  (see  page  174)  might  be  repealed, 
so  that  his  Romanist  friends  might  be  able  to  hold  office  in  the  army; 
but  by  the  narrow  majority  of  one  the  House  of  Commons  decided 
against  its  repeal.  The  king  prorogued  the  session  in  anger,  and  his 
Parliament  never  met  again.  James  then  proceeded  to  carry  out  his 
long-cherished  plan,  of  introducing  Romanism,  by  virtue  of  the  royal 
prerogative.  He  appointed  a  Romanist  gentleman  to  a  command  in 
the  army,  and  then  had  a  test  case  set  up  against  himself  in  the  law 
courts  ;  with  the  view  of  obtaining  a  judicial  decicion  as  to  whether 
he  was  not  able  to  dispense  with  the  laws  in  favour  of  individuals, 
just  as  he  might  grant  a  pardon  to  a  man  who  had  been  condemned 
to  death  by  the  law.  The  judges,  who  had  been  carefully  selected 
for  their  subserviency,  decided  that  he  could  (June  1 B86)  ;  although 
every  one  knew  that  the  exercise  of  royal  prerogatives  had  been 
strictly  limited,  and  that  such  a  decision  must  be  subversive  of  all 
authority  and  law.  If  it  were  lawful  for  the  king  to  dispense  with 
the  laws  in  favour  of  one  man  for  reasons  of  his  own.  he  might  dis- 
pense with  them  in  favour  of  any  number  of  men  ;  and  as  Parliament 
was  not  allowed  to  sit  he  proceeded  to  do  so  to  an  unlimited  extent ; 
so  that  the  decision  of  ihe  judges  had  the  effect  of  making  him  an 
absolute  monarch,  uncontrollable  by  Parliament.  Romanists  resumed 
their  seats  in  the  House  of  Lords  ;  and  four  of  them,  with  the  Queen's 
Jesuit  confessor.  Father  I'ltrr,  were  sworn  in  as  members  of  the  Privy 
Council.  The  Savoy  Palace  became  a  college  for  the  lesuits  ;  monks 
and  friars  paraded  the  streets  as  in  the  mediteval  times  ;  and  the  full 
Roman  ritual  was  set  up  at  the  Chapels  Royal  of  St.  James1  and 
Wbiteh.-.-ll,  to  which  the  king  went  regularly  in  state.  A  papal 
nuncio  was  f.fterwards  received  at  Windsor  as  ambassador  to  the 
English  court,  with  the  most  subservient  homage;  and  the  influential 
men  of  the  day  were  called  in  turn  to  a  private  audience  with  James,  /• 
in  the  hope  that  they  might  bj  persuaded  to  become  Romanists. 
But  no  proselyte  of  importance  was  made  by  such  means.  On  the 
contrary,  a  tempest  of  indignation  was  aroused  in  the  breasts  of  nine- 
tenths  of  the  people  ;  and  the  clergy,  though  submitting  with  sorrow 
to  the  indignities  heaped  upon  themselves,  were  stirred  up  to  a  noble 
defence  of  the  National  Church,  her  doctrines,  history,  and  privileges 
against  tl  e  flowing  tide  of  papalists.  James  saw  that  the  English 
clergy  had  much  the  best  of  the  arguments,  and  issued  injunctions 
to  restrain  them  from  controversial  preaching.  But  the  injunctions 
failed  to  have  the  effect  desired.  James  then  revived  the  IligJi 
Commission  Court  (July  1686),  with  Judge  Jeffreys,  now  lord  chan- 
cellor, at  its  head,  to  summon  and  examine  all  clergy  who  continued 
to  demonstrate  by  their  preaching  the  apostolic  character  of  the 
Church  of  England.  A  London  rector  (Dr.  Sharp)  was  accused 
before  it  of  using  insulting  language  towards  the  king's  religion  ; 
whereupon  the  commissioners  ordered  the  bishop  of  London  to 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


suspend  him.  The  bishop  (Compton)  declined,  on  the  ground  that 
he  was  the  judge  before  whom  the  clergyman  would  have  to  be 
tried,  and  it  would  prejudice  the  case  were  he,  by  suspension,  to 
assume  the  clergyman's  guilt.  The  commissioners  were  so  angry  at 
being  thus  foiled  that  they  passed  over  the  clergyman  and  suspended 
the  bishop  instead.  These  acts  of  tyranny  were  not  likely  to  pre- 
serve the  peace  of  the  country.  Father  Petre  was  the  chief  ad\  iser 
of  James  II.  ;  but  he  also  appeared  to  pay  particular  attention,  for 
a  time  at  least,  to  the  famous  Quaker,  William  Pcnn — the  latter 
being  the  son  of  Admiral  Penn,  who  had  taught  the  king  seamanship, 
and  the  founder  of  the  American  State  which  bears  his  name. 
Penn's  object  was  to  obtain  toleration  for  all  religious  beliefs  ;  and 


CATHEDRAL   OP   CHRISTCHURCH,   OXFORD. 


James  agreed  with  him  to  a  certain  extent  because  his  arguments 
could  be  applied  to  his  own  religion.  1,500  Quakers,  and  a  still 
larger  number  of  Romanists,  were  released  from  confinement ;  but  the 
'  Puritan '  malcontents  remained  in  bondage.  A  few  time-serving 
clergy  were  found  willing  to  declare  themselves  of  the  king's  religion, 
and  these  obtained  dispensations  from  James  to  continue  holding 
their  benefices.  The  king  then  proceeded  to  appoint  Romanists 
to  such  preferments  in  his  patronage  as  fell  vacant,  the  most  notable 
being  John  Massey,  whom  he  made  Dean  of  Christchurch,  Oxford  ; 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  183 

having  previously  appointed  Samuel  Parker  as  its  Bishop,  who,  if 
not  a  Romanist  had  accepted  objectionable  Romanist  doctrines. 
James  also  desired  the  University  of  Cambridge  to  grant  the  M.A. 
degree  to  a  monk  named  Francis  ;  and  when  the  Senate  refused, 
because  the  monk  declined  to  take  the  necessary  oaths,  the  Yice- 
Chancellor  and  eight  others,  including  the  great  philosopher  Isaac 
Ncn-ton.  were  summoned  before  the  new  commission  court  and 
punished.  But  his  most  ill  advised  proceeding  was  the  endeavour  to 
force  a  notoriously  dissolute  Romanist,  one  Anthony  Farmer,  upon 
the  fellows  of  Magdalen  College,  Oxford,  as  their  president.  The 
fellows  refused  to  elect  him.  and  appointed  Dr.  Hough,  one  of  their 
own  body,  instead,  April  1687.  They  were  all  cited  before  the  High 
Commission,  which  declared  Hough's  election  invalid.  The  proofs 
of  Farmer's  unfitness  were  so  plain  that  his  name  was  dropped  by 
the  court,  and  the  Fellows  were  ordered  to  elect  Bishop  Parker  for 
their  president.  They  declined,  on  the  ground  that  Hough  was  now 
their  president.  James  then  came  to  Oxford  with  a  troop  of  soldiers 
and  expelled  the  fellows.  Bishop  Parker  was  installed  by  proxy, 
but  he  died  soon  after,  and  his  place  was  filled  by  a  Roman  vicar 
apostolic.  The  fellows  were  all  deprived  and  succeeded  by 
Romanists,  who  turned  the  college  into  a  papal  seminary.  Consider- 
ing that  fellowships  are  recognise-i  as  freeholds,  this  was  as  arbitrary 
a  proceeding  as  could  well  be  imagined.  It  made  a  great  sensation 
throughout  England.  Yet  there  was  no  active  opposition  on  the 
part  of  the  Church,  and  no  attempt  at  rebellion  of  any  kind  ;  for  the 
clergy  were  pledged  to  the  doctrine  of  Non-Resistance.  Archbishop 
Bancroft  wrote  a  letter  about  that  time  to  Princess  Mary  of  Orange 
which  exactly  described  the  minds  of  Churchmen.  "  All  we  have 
endured  cannot  in  the  least  shake  or  alter  our  steady  loyalty  to  our 
sovereign  and  the  royal  family,  in  the  legal  succession  of  it ;  yet  it 
embitters  the  very  comforts  that  are  left  us,  it  blasts  all  our  present 
joys,  and  makes  us  sit  down  with  sorrow  in  dust  and  ashes." 

3.  The  Declaration  of  Indulgence. — Although  there  was  no 
open  opposition,  it  was  easy  for  James  to  see  that  his  actions  had 
aroused  much  hatred  against  Romanism  ;  and  this  was  increased  by 
Tyrconnel's  administration  of  Ireland.  The  abhorrence  of  Papal 
methods  was  still  further  excited  by  the  constant  stream  of  Huguenot 
refugees  from  France.  After  the  religious  war  that  followed  upon 
the  massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew  (see  page  94),  the  French  King 
Henry  IV.  issued  the  Edict  of  Nantes,  A.D.,  1598  ;  by  which  the 
Huguenots  were  allowed  the  free  exercise  of  their  religious  opinions, 
and  the  reservation  of  certain  fortified  towns,  as  La  Rochelle  (see 
page  123),  where  they  might  dwell  securely  when  persecution  should 
arise.  We  have  seen  that  the  latter  provision  was  violated  by 
Richelieu,  and  in  1683  the  persecutions  broke  out  afresh.  The 
least  show  of  resistance  was  made  the  excuse  for  military  massacres, 


184  m      ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

and  the  poor  Huguenots  were  forced  to  fly.  In  1685  the  edict  of 
Nantes  was  revoked  altogether,  and  fearful  sufferings  were  borne  by 
the  oppressed.  Hundreds  came  to  England,  and  were  welcomed 
with  open  arms.  Their  narration  of  the  sufferings  they  had  borne 
increased  the  national  hatred  of  papal  intolerance,  and  made  it  all 
the  more  difficult  for  James  II.  to  fulfil  his  designs.  Finding  that 
the  loyal  Churchmen  were  beginning  to  be  lukewarm  and  unfavour- 
able he  left  off  persecuting  the  Nonconformists;  and  sought  to  enlist 
their  sympathies  and  good  will  by  publishing  a  Declaration  of  In- 
dulgence (April,  1687)  ;  which  suspended  all  penal  statutes  against 
Romanists  and  Dissenters,  abolished  religious  tests,  and  pardoned  all 
who  were  undergoing  penalties  for  their  peculiar  beliefs.  But  the 
rute  did  not  succeed.  The  efforts  made  to  obtain  addresses  of  thanks 
for  this  remarkable  act  of  royal  clemency  had  the  most  ludicrous 
results.  Bishop  Parker  managed  to  persuade  one  clergyman  in  the 
diocese  of  Oxford  to  sign  such  an  address,  and  two  complacent 
priests  were  found  in  the  diocese  of  Bristol.  A  few  Anabaptists  and 
other  extreme  sects,  altogether  insignificant  in  numbers  and  influence 
took  advantage  of  the  document  and  thanked  the  king  ;  but  the 
great  bulk  of  Dissenters  refused  to  accept  a  toleration  that  was  only 
offered  for  the  sake  of  licensing  papalism.  They  knew  that  if  the 
words  of  the  declaration  were  '  softer  than  butter '  there  was  '  war 
in  its  heart.'  In  Nov.,  1687,  James  thought  of  calling  another 
Parliament,  and  he  asked  the  lords  lieutenant  of  counties  to  furnish 
him  with  names  of  persons  not  belonging  to  the  Church  of  England, 
whom  he  might  nominate  as  candidates  for  election  ;  notwithstanding 
that  the  law  prevented  anyone  from  sitting  as  a  member  who  would 
not  subscribe  the  Church  formularies.  Many  of  the  lords  lieutenant 
resigned  their  posts  rather  than  comply  with  this  illegal  order.  In 
April,  1688,  James  re-issued  the  Declaration  of  Indulgence,  on  the 
ground  that  it  had  not  been  sufficiently  made  known ;  and  followed 
it  up  with  this  remarkable  order. 

"  At  the  Court  at  Whitehall,  May  4.— It  is  this  day  ordered  by  his  Majesty 
in  Council  that  his  Majesty's  late  gracious  Declaration,  bearing  date  the  27th  April 
last,  be  read  at  the  usual  time  of  Divine  service  on  the  20th  and  27th  of  this  mouth 
in  all  churches  and  chapels  within  the  cities  of  London  and  Westminster,  and  ten 
miles  thereabout ;  and  upon  the  3rd  and  10th  of  June  next  in  all  other  churches 
and  chapels  throughout  this  kingdom.  And  it  is  hereby  further  ordered  that  the 
Bight  Reverend  the  Bishops  cause  the  said  Declaration  to  be  sent  and  distributed 
throughout  their  several  and  respective  dioceses  to  be  read  accordingly." 

4.  The  Bishops  in  the  Tower. — It  was  one  thing  for  the 
clergy  to  sorrowfully  submit  to  the  calamities  the  king  brought 
upon  them,  but  quite  another  to  be  aiders  and  abettors  of  the  king 
in  so  flagrant  a  violation  of  the  Constitution  as  the  suspension  of  a 
large  number  of  laws  without  the  consent  of  Parliament.  If  the 
laws  were  intolerant,  and  the  nation  desired  that  they  should  be- 


ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY. 


185 


repealed,  and  the  nation's  representatives  in  Parliament  gave  legal 
expression  to  their  desires,  the  clergy  would  have  submitted  to  the 
decision  without  a  murmur.  But  the  king  was  now  rushing  head- 
long into  a  course  that  the  nation  abhorred,  against  the  expressed  wish 
of  the  Parliament  ;  and  although  the  clergy  were  determined  to  be 
loyal  to  their  oath  of  'non-resistance,'  they  would  not  help  the  king 
to  break  the  laws  ;  more  especially  as  they  knew  his  plan  to  be  only 
an  attempt  to  humiliate  them  and  degrade  the  Church  of  England  ; 
which  had  proved  to  be  the  only  safeguard  for  the  country  against 
11- >inan  and  Puritan  intolerance.  The  clergy  of  London  hurriedly 
assembled  to  consider  this  order,  and  pledged  themselves  not  to  read 
the  document.  Most  of  the  bishops  were  away  on  their  diocesan 
duties  ;  but  they  were  hastily  summoned  by  the  primate,  and  six 
bishops  assembled  in  London  under  his  presidency,  the  Friday  be- 
fore the  fateful  Sunday.  Having  drawn  up  a  respectful  petition  to 
the  king,  'not  to  insist  upon  their  distributing  and  reading  a  de- 
claration founded  on  a  dispensin?  j>ower  as  hath  b-  en  «.fien  declared 
illegal  in  Parliament,'  they  to,,k  i,  to  Whitehall  the  same  right  i.M.iv 
1°.  Archbishop  San- 
c.  oft  was  debarred  from 
attending  at  court,  be- 
cause he  had  refused 
to  sit  upon  the  Hi-h 
Commission  :  but  ilie 
other  six  bishops- — 
Lake,  of  Chichester : 
Treiawney.  of  Bristol  : 
Ken, of  Bathund  \Vel;  =  ; 
White,of  Peterborough; 
Lloyd,  of  St.  Asaph  ; 
and  Turner,  of  Ely — 
were  admitted  to  the 
presence,  and  the 
Bishop  of  St.  Asaph 
gave  the  petition  to 
the  king.  On  reading 
it  James  exclaimed, 
"  Here  are  strange 
•words.  I  did.  not  ex- 
pect this  from  the 
Church  of  England. 
This  is  a  standard  of 
rebellion."  All  the 
bishops  most  humbly 

disclaimed   any   desire  A  PBOCESSION  TO  THE  TOWEB 

of  disloyalty,  and  Ken 
said,  "1  hope  your  Majesty  will  grant  to  us  that  liberty  of  conscience 


186 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


which  you  propose  to  grant  to  all  mankind."  "  I  will  have  my  De- 
claration published,"  cried  the  king.  "  We  have  two  duties  to  per- 
form ;  our  duty  to  God.  and  our  duty  to  your  Majesty.  We  will 
honour  you  but  we  must  fear  God,"  replied  Trelawney.  "  I  will  be 
obeyed,"  said  James,  very  angrily,  as  he  dismissed  them.  "  God's 
will  be  done,"  were  Ken's  parting  words.  The  king's  advisers  were 
puzzled  what  to  do  next.  Not  so  the  bishops  and  clergy.  They  had 
quite  made  up  their  minds,  and  other  prelates  hastened  to  add  their 
names  to  the  draught  of  the  petition  in  sign  of  their  approval.  All 
the  eminent  Nonconformists,  like  Baxter  and  Howe,  announced  their 
intention  to  stand  by  the  bishops  and  clergy ;  and  when  the 
appointed  days  arrived  not  200  out  of  all  the  10,000  clergy  could  be 
found  to  read  the  Declaration.  At  Westminster  the  congregation 
hurried  away  as  soon  as  the  reading  began  ;  and  at  Whitehall,  because 

the  clergy  refused  to  read  it,  one 
of  the  choristers  did  so.  James  was 
in    great    fury,    and   the    seven 
bishops  were  cited  to  appear  before 
him  in  council  on  Friday,  June  8. 
The  news   that   they  were    sum- 
m'  med  spread  like  wildfire,  as  the 
5:  news  of  their  petition   had  done, 
~  and  on  the  day  appointed  all  the 
~  avenues  of  approach  to  Whitehall 
by  road  and  river  were  thronged 
with  sympathizers.    Acting  under 
legal  advice  the  bishops  declined 
to  answer  the  incriminating  ques- 
tions  put  to    them    by   Jeffreys. 
They  weie   then   told    that  they 
THK  TRAITORS'  GATE.  would  be  tried  at  Westminster  for 

libel,  and  were  bidden  to  find  bail  for  their  appearance.  They 
pleaded  the  -privilege  oi'  the'r  peerage,  and  declined  to  enter 
into  recognizances.  They  were  therefore  committed  to  the  Tower. 
Their  passage  down  the  Thames  resembled  the  triumph  of  heroes. 
Crowds  lined  both  banks  and  shouted,  '  God  bless  your  lordships  '  1 
Innumerable  boats  accompanied  them,  and  when  they  reached 
the  landing  stairs  at  Traitor's  Gate  the  sentinels  who  received 
them  knelt  to  ask  their  blessing.  So  cheerfully  did  the  bishops 
bear  imprisonment  pending  their  arraignment,  and  so  marked  were 
the  enthusiastic  demonstrations  in  their  favour  from  all  ranks, 
that  they  were  soon  allowed  out  on  their  own  recognisances.  They 
had  been  visited  by  so  many  people  of  rank  and  influence,  during  the 
time  they  were  imprisoned,  that  it  was  more  convenient  to  the 
prison  authorities  for  them  to  hold  such  receptions  in  their  own 
lodgings  ;  especially  as  they  refused  to  pay  any  fees  to  the  lieutenant 
of  the  Tower. 


ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY.  187 

5.  The  Trial  of  the  Seven  Bishops.— When  June  29  arrived 
the  day  appointed  for  the  bishops  to  be  tried,  half  the  peers  of 
England  showed  their  friendship  by  attending  the  court  ;  while  the 
streets  round  Westminster  were  filled  with  eager  multitudes,  deter- 
mined to  do  or  dare  anything  if  the  bishops  were  condemned.  There  is 
a  well-known  Cornish  ballad,  composed  subsequently  for  political 
purposes,  which  enshrines  in  its  refrain  the  strong  feelings  evoked  by 
the  trial — 

'  And  shall  Trelawney  die  ?  And  shall  Trelawney  die  ? 
There's  twenty-thousand  Cornish  men  will  know  the  reason  why.' 
Portraits  of  '  The  Seven  '  were  eagerly  bought,  and  cherished  with 
loving  care  for  many  years  after.  The  accusation  against  the  bishops 
was  that  they  had  published  a  false,  malicious  and  seditious  libel. 
"  Counsel  for  the  defence  urged  that  there  was  no  publication,  for 
the  petition  was  placed  in  the  king's  hand  ;'  that  the  petition  was 
not  false,  for  all  that  it  contained  was  in  the  journals  of  Parliament  ; 
that  it  was  not  malicious,  for  the  defendants  had  not  sought  to  make 
strife,  but  had  been  placed  in  a  situation  in  which  they  found  them- 
selves by  the  action  of  the  Government ;  that  it  was  not  seditious, 
for  it  was  seen  by  the  king  alone  ;  that  it  was  not  a  libel,  but  a 
decent  petition,  such  as  subjects  might  lawfully  present  to  their 
king  "  (Hale).  There  were  four  judges.  Two  of  them  summed  up 
against  the  bishops,  and  two  in  their  favour.  The  jury  were  locked 
up  all  night.  Eleven  of  the  twelve  soon  made  up  their  minds  to 
acquit  the  prelates,  but  one  obstinate  man  held  out  until  the  morn- 
ing. He  was  the  king's  brewer,  and  he  feared  that  a  favourable 
verdict  would  lose  him  the  royal  custom,  but  as  the  eleven  persuaded 
him  that  an  adverse  verdict  would  lose  him  the  patronage  of  the 
beer-drinking  public  he  was  at  last  won  over  to  their  side.  The 
Court  re-asseinhled  at  10  a.m.  the  next  day,  June  30.  The  great 
Hall  of  Westminster  was  packed  with  sympathizers,  who  listened 
breathlessly  for  the  verdict.  Every  arrangement  had  been  made  to 
signal  the  result  of  the  trial  all  over  the  land,  and  when  the  foreman 
of  the  jury  pronounced  the  magic  words  '  NOT  GUILTY  '  the  exultation 
within  and  without  the  hall  was  unbounded. 

"  The  Bishops  urged  the  people  to  be  still 
With  outstretched  hands  and  earnest  speech  in  vain! 
Tea,  many,  haply  wont  to  entertain 
Small  reverence  for  the  mitre's  offices, 
And  to  religion's  self  no  friendly  will, 
A  prelate's  blessing  ask  on  bended  knees." 

The  Church  of  England  had  never  been  so  dear  to  the  nation  as  then. 
Every  one  who  was  not  a  Komanist,  whether  they  were  Churchmen, 

1  The  petition  however  had  been  published  ;  by  whom  ii  not  known.  Some  think 
the  king  was  privy  to  its  distribution,  in  order  to  make  a  case  against  the  bishops  ; 
others  think  some  clergy  were  responsible  for  spreading  it  broadcast  j  but  all  agree 
that  the  bishops  had  no  hand  in  the  publication. 


188  ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 

Os    ^  ^ 


THE   SEVEN  BISHOPS   WHO   SAVED   ENGLAND,   JUNE,    1688. 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY.  189 

Presbyterians  or  Sectaries,  thankfully  acknowledged  that  the  Bishops 
had  fought  for  and  won  the  constitutional  liberties  of  England 
against  absolute  monarchy  ;  and  the  freedom  of  religion  from  Papal 
intolerance.  The  king  heard  the  verdict  from  a  very  unpalatable 
source.  He  was  with  his  camp  at  Ilounslow,  which  he  formed  in 
liJS'J  to  overawe  London,  when  a  great  shout  of  glee  was  re-echoed 
again  and  again  by  the  soldiers.  •  What  is  that  nuise  ? '  demanded 
James.  '  Oh,  nothing,'  was  the  reply,  '  they  are  glad  the  bishops  are 
acquitted,  that's  all.'  '  So  much  the  worse  for  them,'  the  king 
rejoined.  Even  the  unanimous  expression  of  the  nation's  opinion 
could  not  turn  him  from  his  fateful  purpose.  The  Tories  now  began 
to  modify  the  doctrine  of  '  passive  obedience,'  and  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  loyalty  to  the  throne  was  due  to  the  office,  and  not 
the  person,  of  a  king  ;  and  that  extreme  oppression  on  the  monarch's 
part,  in  defiance  of  the  nation's  laws,  might  justify  resistance. 

6.  The  Revolution.— While  James  had  been  trying  to  coerce 
the  nation  into  Romanism  many  influential  persons  had  been 
intriguing  with  his  son  iti  law,  the  Prince  of  Orange ;  some  with  a 
view  of  making  him  regent,  and  others  in  order  to  make  him  joint 
monarch  with  his  wife  Mary.  On  the  day  of  the  bishops'  acquittal 
seven  influential  persons,  leaders  of  both  political  parties,  sent  a 
letter  to  William  inviting  him  and  his  army  to  England.  He  at  once 
consented,  and  proceeded  to  fit  out  an  expedition  for  the  purpose. 
In  the  meantime  James  continued  to  vex  the  land.  He  endeavoured 
to  force  the  reading  of  the  Declaration  by  means  of  the  High 
Commission.  Three  bishops,  hitherto  friendly  to  James,  had  been 
made  commissioners,  but  they  declined  to  act  any  longer.  James 
then  brought  over  Tyrconucl's  Irish  troops,  who  were  Romanist  to  a 
man  ;  for  the  English  soldiers  had  laid  down  their  pikes  rather  than 
sign  an  engagement  which  would  have  bound  them  to  carry  out  his 
majesty's  popish  intentions.  Not  until  the  King  of  France  sent 
warning  of  the  Dutch  expedition  did  James  attempt  to  pause  in  his 
insensate  career.  On  September  30th  William  Prince  of  Orange 
issued  his  declaration  that,  as  husband  of  Mary,  he  was  coming 
with  an  army  to  uphold  the  '  Protestant '  religion ;  and  to  secure  a  full 
and  legal  Parliament  by  whose  decision  he  would  abide.  Then,  when 
it  was  too  late  James  realised  his  folly,  and  sought  to  conciliate  the 
Church.  The  Bishops  advised  him  to  dissolve  the  High  Commission 
Court,  to  reinstate  the  fellows  of  Magdalen  whom  he  had  illegally 
ejected,  to  remove  the  Romanists  from  the  Privy  Council,  to  give  up 
his  evil  practice  of  dispensing  with  the  laws,  aud  to  call  a  free 
Parliament.  They  a'so  hoped  he  would  give  them  some  occasions  to 
argue  with  him  on  the  necessity  of  his  return  to  the  Church  of 
England.  The  first  three  suggestions  were  adopted ;  but  James 
refused  to  yield  his  claim  to  the  '  dispensing  power,'  and  he  scornfully 
refused  to  call  a  Parliament  while  the  country  was  threatened  with 


190 


ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 


an  invasion.  James  then  wished  the  clergy  to  sign  a  Declaration  oj 
Abhorrence  against  William's  expedition,  but  they  refused.  At  the 
same  time  they  looked  coldly  on  the  schemes  of  the  Prince  of  Orange 
because  his  declaration  of  September  30  made  no  provision  for 
maintaining  the  rights  and  liberties  of  the  English  Church,  and 
because  of  his  known  preference  for  Dissent.  William  sailed  from 
Holland  October  1 9,  but  was  driven  back  by  contrary  winds.  He 
sailed  again,  November  2.  with  better  fortune,  and  landed  at  Torbay. 
November  5.  The  national  dread  of  papal  terrorism  will  fully 

account  for  the  pop- 
ular rejoicing  when  it 
was  known  that  the 
Prince  of  Orange  had 
arrived  with  a  fleet  of 
700  sail,  and  16,000 
Dutch  retainers.  No 
one  desired  to  experi- 
ence in  England  a 
repetition  of  the  mas- 
sacre of  Piedmont,  and 
the  troubles  of  the 
Huguenots.  Evelyn 
wrote  : — '  There  seems 
to  be  a  universal  design 
to  destroy  all  that  will 
not  go  to  mass  through- 
out Europe ' ;  and 
therefore  even  foreign 
soldiers,  whose  anti- 
pathy to  Romanism 
was  beyond  suspicion 
were  hailed  as  national 
deliverers.  Their  ad- 
vent had  the  effect  of 
causing  all  Romanists 
in  office  to  lay  down 
their  commissions,  and 
quit  the  country ;  while 


MAGDALEN   COLLEGE,   OXFORD. 


the  most  trusted  officers  in  James'  army,  with  many  of  the  rank  and 
file,  and  even  his  daughter  Anne,  deserted  to  the  hero  of  the  hour. 

7.  A  Lost  Cause. — Two  months  before,  the  country  was  sur- 
prised to  hear  that  the  Queen  had  given  birth  to  a  young  prince.  So 
bitter  was  the  hatred  against  the  Romanists  of  the  court  that 
the  genuineness  of  the  birth  was  doubted,  even  in  face  of  the  clearest 
proofs  that  James  could  bring.  That  child  and  his  descendants 
became  a  fruitful  source  of  annoyance  to  England  in  after  days ;  but 


ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY. 


191 


the  history    of    the   Jacobites    must    be    sought    elsewhere.    The 

desertion   of  the  officers   was  followed  by  the  desertion  of  James' 

youngest  daughter  to  the  insurgents ;  and  the  king,  feeling  that  he 

could  trust  no  one,  sought  safety  in  flight.     London  hastily  formed 

a  provisional  government,  and  invited  the  Prince  of  Orange  ;  who 

arrived    in    London    Dec.    19.      It    was    then 

arranged    to    call    a    Convention    Parliament, 

which  met  January  22,  1689.     It  contained  a 

majority    of    Whig    Members  ;     and    declared 

that,    as  James  had   deserted   the  nation,   the 

throne  should  be  settled  on  William  and  Mary 

as  joint  rulers.     They  laid  down  the  terms  on 

which  they  were  to  rule  by  summing  up  the  /; 

illegal  acts  of   James    in    the   Declaration    of  ^ 

Right ;  which  were  subsequently  incorporated 

in  the  statute  called  the  '  Bill  of  Right*:    S 

one  thought  of  mentioning   the  young  Prince,  \ 

who  was  afterwards  known  as  the  Pretender.  •. 

William  and    Mary  accepted   the 

Feb.   13,  and  were  crownel  King  and  Queen.; 

Henceforth    the    supreme    ruler    of    England; 

became    a  constitutional  monarch,   as  the 

vant,  not  the  master  of   the   legislature.     The: 

English  Revolution  thus   completed  had  been  ; 

accomplished    without    bloodshed,    but    there' 

were  still  many  people,  especially  in  Scotland 

and  Ireland,  who  considered  that  William  was 

an   usurper.      Before      very      long 

James   II.  obtained  sufficient  help 

from   the  French  king,  to  put  him-  \ 

self    at    the   head    of     Tyrconnel's) 

Irish  army.     But  William  sent  his  . 

Dutchmen    over,     under    Marshall ' 

Schomberg,  and  very  soon  followed 

with  reinforcements.     On    July   1, 

1690,    there    was    a    great    battle1 

fought  on  the  banks  of  the  Boyne  '• 

river.    The  forces    of  James  were        THE  BOYNE  MONUMENT. 

utterly  routed,  and  the  supplanted  king  took  refuge  once  more  in 

France.     From  that  moment  the  cause  of  the  Stuart  kings  was  lost, 

although  there  has  never  beeji  wanting  an  heir  to  its  misfortunes. 

The   present  representative   (1891)   of  the  Jacobite   inheritance  is 

Prince   Rupert   of  Bavaria.     An   obelisk  now  marks  the  site  of  the 

Battle  of  the  Boyne. 

8.     The  Non- Jurors. — The  seven  bishops  who  so  bravely  with- 
stood the   illegal  acts  of  James  II.  to  dispense  with  twenty  acts  of 


192  ILLUSTRATE!.    NOTES  ON 

parliament,  in  order  that  he  might  introduce  Romanists  to  high 
offices  in  Church  and  Eealm,  were  not  among  those  who  took  part  in 
the  Revolution.  Having  sworn  to  be  loyal  to  King  James  they 
remained  so ;  and  even  when  he  fled  from  his  post  five  of  the  seven 
preferred  to  go  into  retirement  rather  than  take  the  oath  of  allegiance 
to  the  invading  Prince,  whom  they  considered  an  usurper, — though 
they  would  have  allowed  William  to  be  Regent,  according  to  the 
suggestion  of  Charles  II.,  if  he  would  consent  to  allow  all  affairs  of 
State  to  be  transacted  in  the  name  of  James  II.  In  this  action  they 
were  followed  by  other  bishops  and  clergy, — notably  the  bishops  of 
Gloucester,  Worcester,  and  Chester — who  preferred  suspension  and 
election  from  their  benefices  rather  than  renounce  allegiance  to 
James,  whom  alone  they  held  to  be  the  rightful  king.  These  J\'m:- 
Jurors  were  but  a  small  body  of  men  ;  hardly  five  hundred  clergy  all 
told,  with  a  corresponding  proportion  of  laymen.  Their  expulsion 
from  office  by  the  new  civil  government  deprived  the  Church  of 
many  learned,  pious,  and  conscientious  members  :  foremost  among 
whom  was  the  saintly  bishop  Thomas  Ken,  of  whom,  however,  it 
must  be  said  that  he  declined  to  follow  the  rest  of  his  brethren  in 
their  efforts  to  restore  the  Stuart  dynasty.  The  conscientious 
Bc.rnples  of  many  Non-jurors  do  not  admit  of  doubt,  and  tin  ii  action 
.  was  but  the  logical  outcome  of  adherence  to  the  doctrine  of  hercdit:;:-y 
divine  right  ;  biit.  this  extreme  idea  of  loyalty  was  detrimental  to 
national  liberties:  and  subversive  of  the  elective  character  of  the 
Englirh  monarchy.  The  Scriptures  command  loyally  from  all 
Christians  to  the  powers  that  be.  The  Battle  of  the  I'.oyne  convinced 
the  majority  of  the  nation  that  the  Revolution  s<'tfk>>ru'ni  could  not 
be  overturned,  and  it  would  have  been  well  for  the  Church  had  the 
Non  jurors  contented  themselves  with  proving  that  they  had  no  hand 
in  the  change  of  dynasty.  Doctrines  of  '  passive  obedience  '  and 
'non-resistance'  could  never  justify  active  and  secret  conspiracies 
against  the  do  facto  government,  such  as  many  of  the  non-jurois 
acquiesced  in,  especially  after  Mary's  death.  As  the  new  govern- 
ment had  been  approved  by  nineteen  twentieths  of  the  nation,  the 
prelates  and  clergy  who  thought  it  right  not  to  transfer  their 
allegiance  had  rio  business  to  separate  themselves  from  their  fellow 
bishops  and  clergy  as  they  did.  They  forgot  that  the  Church 
does  not  exist  for  the  clergy,  but  the  clergy  for  the  Church ; 
and  that  the  duties  of  clergymen  were  never  meant  to  include 
resistance  to  a  Government  that  was  willing  to  give  them  protection 
in  the  performance  of  their  spiritual  functions.  Archbishop  Bancroft 
and  others  thought  themselves  justified  in  keeping  up  the  schism 
they  had  made,  by  calling  themselves  the  true  ancient  Church  ;  ana 
consecrating  bishops  to  succeed  them.  After  the  death  of  James 
II.,  and  the  recognition  of  the  'Pretender'  as  King  of  England  by 
the  French,  an  oath  of  abjuration  was  imposed  upon  the  clergy  ;  by 
which  they  were  required  to  recognise  William  as  the  'rightful  and 


ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY. 


193 


lawful  kintr.'  Upon  ibis  many  who  were  content  to  obey  the  de  facto 
government  but  could  not  recognise  the  Revolution  settlement  as  a 
de  jure  government,  joined  the  non-juriug  schism  ;  and  it  was  noi 
until  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century  that  the  unhappy  division 
so  caused  came  to  an  end. 

9.  The  Vacillating  Clergy. — The  Xon-jurors  were  certainly 
free  from  any  suspicion  of  interested  motives,  for  they  had  all  to 
lose  and  nothing  to  gain  by  refusing  the  oath.  Their  action  was 
consistent,  at  any  rate,  and  their  firmness  brought  them  many 


BRAY  CHURCH. 

friends.  Not  so  with  the  majority  of  the  clergy,  who  did  not  feel 
their  consciences  violated  by  accepting  the  new  order  of  things.  Such 
were  unceasingly  reproached  by  those  who  refused  to  swear,  for  having 
allowed  pecuniary  motives  to  warp  their  judgment.  In  the  large 
majority  of  cases  the  taunt  was  undeserved,  but  there  were  many 
men  whose  opinions  varied  with  every  phase  of  public  opinion. 
Among  them  was  William  Sherlock,  master  of  the  Temple,  who  had 
been  a  warm  advocate  of  James  II.  and  joined  the  Non-jurors,  but 
altered  his  mind  and  took  the  oaths;  upon  which  he  obtained  high 
preferment.  For  this  he  was  revik-d  by  Non-jurors  on  the  one  side, 
and  by  Revolutionists  on  the  other ;  while  people  who  cared  for 
neither  side  cried  out  against  'turncoats  and  time-servers.'  Those 


194  NOTES    ON   CHURCH   Hf STORY. 

of  whom  Sherlock  was  the  type  were  for  many  years  assailed  with 
satirical  lampoons  in  prose  and  doggerel  verse,  of  which  the  well 
known  Jacobite  song  The  Vicar  of  Bray  is  a  fair  example.  It  will 
be  understood  that  Bray  is  an  assumed  name  on  the  songster's  part. 


When  William  -was  our  king  declared 
•   To  ease  the  Nation's  grievance, 
With  this  new  wind  about  I  steered, 
And  swore  to  him  allegiance  ; 


Old  principles  I  did  renounce, 
Set  conscience  at  a  distance  ; 

"Passive  obedience"  was  a  joke, 
A  jest  was  "  non-resistance." 


Many  clergy  must  have  felt  that  their  conduct  was  open  to  such  a 
construction,  but  it  is  difficult  to  see  how  they  could  have  acted 
otherwise  than  they  did.  It  is  a  matter  for  devout  thankfulness  that 
the  Church  of  England  was  not  drawn  into  the  vortex  that  over- 
whelmed the  Romanist  king  James,  by  a  general  agreement  to  the 
Declaration  of  Abhorrence  which  he  desired  them  to  make  against 
his  son-in-law's  invasion.  The  election  of  the  Prince  of  Orange  was 
in  many  ways  advantageous  to  England  ;  and  chiefly  because,  in  spite 
of  his  known  preference  for  Dissenters,  it  became  impossible  for  any- 
one to  be  monarch  of  this  country  who  would  not  uphold  the 
National  Church.  Ever  since  the  Revolution  this  has  been  the  case. 
The  Church  has  been  free  alike  from  medieval  superstitions,  and  from 
Puritan  innovations.  She  has  kept  the  mean  between  the  tno  extremes. 
And  God  has  prospered  her  exceedingly. 

GENEALOGICAL      TABLE. 


JAMES  I 
STUARTS.  ^=  HANOVERIANS. 

I  !! 

CHARLES  I.  Elizabeth=Elector  Frederick. 


CHAELES  II. 


Anne  )  = 


Mary=William  of  Nassau. 
I  I 


"        _  j  Elector  ol 

)  =JAMES  n.=  <  Mary  of     ophia—  j  Hanover. 
>  |  j  JModena.    |____ 


WILLIAM  III.=MARY. 


GEORGE  I. 
The 'Old 
Pretender.   GEORGE  II.  (died  1760). 


The  Young 


Pretender.  Prince  Frederick  (died  1751 
Childless  ANNE  || 

(End  of  Stuart  line).  GEORGE  III. 


GEORGE  IV.  Edward,  Duke  of  Kent. 

WILLIAM  IV. 


VICTORIA  (Whom  God  Preserve). 


PART  VI. 

0f  (Bnglanft  since  i\]t 


CHAPTER   XXVTI.  (A.D.  1G88-17H). 
PEACE  AND  POPULARITY. 

Down  a  swift  stream,  thus  far,  a  bold  design 
Have  we  pursued.        ..... 

Henceforth,  as  on  the  bosom  of  a  stream 

That  slackens,  and  spreads  wide  a  watery  gleam, 

We.  nothing  lotii,  a  lingering  coarse  to  measure. 

May  gather  up  our  thoughts,  and  mark  at  leisure 

Features  that  else  had  vanished  like  a  dream." — Wordraiorth. 

1.  The  '  Protestant '  Succession. — Our  business  in  this 
concluding  part  is  to  set  forth  some  of  the  important  events  in 
English  Church  history  during  the  last  200  years.  It  is  a  very 
chequered  period,  in  which  the  Church  experienced  alternated 
seasons  of  calm  and  storm,  wherein  also  she  displayed  both  unac- 
countable lethargy  and  marvellous  zeal.  It  is  a  period  of  which 
most  people  know  something,  so  that  we  need  not  pay  strict  attention 
to  chronological  sequence  ;  and  as  every  one  agrees  that  the  connexion 
between  the  Church  and  Realm  of  England  has  remained  unchanged 
since  the  Revolution,  we  need  not  dwell  so  much  upon  the  continuous 
history  of  either.  Both  Whigs  and  Tories  accepted  the  government 
of  William  III.  for  the  sake  of  the  constitutional  privileges  thereby 
assured,  though  the  extreme  Tories  would  have  preferred  not  to 
disturb  the  Stuart  succession.  William  soon  outlived  the  unpopu- 
larity that  his  Dutch  extraction  and  foreign  friends  had  brought 
upon  him,  and  before  the  close  of  the  17th  century  he  was  respected, 
if  not  loved,  by  the  majority  of  the  nation  ;  not  merely  because  the 
connexion  with  Holland  had  widened  our  commercial  dealings  with 
European  States,  but  chiefly  because  his  relations  to  Parliament  had 
made  the  religious  and  civil  liberties  of  England  safer  and  more  real 
than  ever  they  were  before.  The  Bill  of  Rights  passed  in  October 
1689,  containing  the  terms  under  which  he  held  the  throne  from 
Parliament,  added  a  significant  provision  to  the  '  Declaration  of 
Right.'  that  no  Romanist  should  be  eligible  to  wear  the  Crown,  or 
be  the  monarch's  consort.  The  war  which  William  had  undertaken 


196  ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 

against  France,  in  alliance  with  other  European  countries,  had 
increased  his  popularity  ;  and  when  a  Jacobite  plot  to  murder  him 
was  discovered  in  1696,  a  formidable  association  was  formed  among 
the  Whigs  for  his  defence,  the  members  of  which  were  pledged  to 
uphold  the  anti-papal  succession  alluded  to  in  the  '  Bill  of  lights.' 
The  war  with  France  seemed  to  be  at  an  end  in  1697  ;  for  by  the 
Peact;  of  If  ys  wick  Louis  XIV.  agreed  to  abandon  the  Stuart  cause 
and  recognize  William  III.  as  the  only  lawful  English  king,  and 
the  Princess  Anne  for  his  successor  on  the  throne.  Although  during 
William's  life  constitutional  government  was  safe,  the  failure  of 
heirs  to  Queen  Mary,  and  the  early  deaths  of  Anne's  numerous 
offspring,  made  it  necessary  for  Parliament  to  strengthen  the 
'  Protestant '  succession  ;  and  therefore  an  Act  of  Settlement  was 
passed  in  1701  (12  &  13  Wm.  III.,  c.  2),  which  declared  that,  in 
default  of  heirs  to  the  Princess  Anne,  the  succession  should  devolve 
upon  Sophia,  granddaughter  of  James  I.,  who  had  married  the 
Elector  of  Hanover.  This  act  contained  the  following  distinct 
provision  : — '  Whereas  it  is  requisite  and  necessary  that  some  further 
provision  be  made  for  securing  our  religious  laws  and  liberties,  who- 
ever shall  come  to  the  possession  of  this  crown  shall  join  in  com- 
munion with  the  Church  of  England  as  by  law  established.'  This  is 
the  basis  upon  which  all  subsequent  monarchs  have  accepted  the 
English  crown.  The  foregoing  pages  will  enable  the  reader  to 
understand  that  the  peculiar  and  novel  phrase  '  bylaw  established,' 
now  so  much  made  use  of  by  opponents  of  the  National  Church, 
could  not  have  been  intended  to  mean  that  the  Church  had  been 
recently  founded ;  but  that  the  nation,  having  had  temporary 
experience  of  numerous  ills  from  modern  sects,  desired  to  record  its 
conviction  that  constitutional  liberty  and  good  order  could  only  be 
secured  by  a  firm  adherence  to  the  ancient  Church  ;  whose  loyalty 
had  been  proved  through  storm  and  sunshine.  The  stipulation  that 
the  sovereign  must  be  in  communion  with  the  Church  of  England 
proves  that  Parliament  at  that  time  was  quite  as  anxious  to  avoid 
any  recurrence  of  the  evils  of  the  Commonwealth,  as  it  was  to 
preserve  the  land  from  papal  innovations. 

2.  The  Toleration  Act. — Soon  after  the  accession  of  William 
III.  great  efforts  were  made  to  cement  the  friendship  between 
Churchmen  and  Nonconformists,  which  the  national  dread  of 
Romanism  had  brought  about.  Two  bills  were  laid  before  Parlia- 
ment for  the  purpose,  known  as  the  '  Comprehension  Bill,'  and  the 
'  Toleration  Bill.1  Had  the  first  been  allowed  to  pass,  all  the  Church's 
former  struggles  would  have  gone  for  nothing  ;  for  it  aimed  at 
nothing  less  than  the  complete  alteration  of  the  liturgy  and  the 
status  of  the  Church,  in  order  to  unite  '  their  Majesties'  Protestant 
subjects  on  terms  wherein  all  the  reformed  Churches  agree.'  The 
bill  was  first  introduced  into  the  House  of  Lords  and  owing  to  the 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  197 

support  of  William,  and  the  absence  of  the  non-juriug  archbishop, 
the  peers  were  persuaded  to  pass  it.  The  meddlesome  cleric,  Gilbert 
Burnet.  who  had  just  before  been  made  bishop  of  Salisbury  for  his 
share  in  the  negotiations  that  brought  William  to  the  throne, 
zealously  advocated  the  measure  ;  especially  a  proviso  in  it  which 
would  have  dispensed  with  kneeling  at  the  reception  of  Holy  Com- 
munion. But  when  the  bill  was  sent  down  to  the  Commons  they 
positively  refused  to  discuss  a  measure  which  had  for  its  object  the 
alteration  of  the  doctrine  and  discipline  of  the  Church,  which  had 
never  been  submitted  for  the  approval  of  Convocation.  As  the 
Parliament  of  1689  was  only  a  Convention.  Convocation  had  not 
been  called  together.  The  Comprehension  Bill  was  therefore  dropped 
until  there  was  a  new  Parliament  and  a  new  Convocation,  and 
nothing  came  of  it  after  all.  A  better  fate  was  in  store  for  the 
Toleration  Bill,  for  it  readily  passed  both  Houses.  The  object  of  it 
was  to  exempt  all  who  should  take  the  new  oaths  of  allegiance  and 
supremacy  from  the  penalties  imposed  upon  Nonconformity  by 
previous  statutes  ;  but  it  did  not  remove  the  disabilities  which 
prevented  them  from  being  admitted  to  civil  offices,  nor  did  it  allow 
them  to  worship  freely  after  their  own  fashion,  unless  their  meeting 
houses  were  licensed  by  justices  of  the  peace.  Romanist  recusants 
were  expressly  excluded  from  the  privileges  of  this  act,  as  were 
those  who  denied  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  or  the  Deity  of 
our  Saviour.  Quakers  were  allowed  by  the  act  to  make  a  solemn 
affirmation  in  lieu  of  the  oath.  Public  opinion  as  yet  was  averse  to 
freedom  of  thought  in  matters  of  belief.  The  laity,  as  proved  by 
their  attitude  with  respect  to  the  Comprehension  Bill,  would  have 
considered  it  a  crime  to  assist  in  the  propagation  of  what  they 
believed  to  be  error  by  allowing  it  to  have  free  course. 

Liberty  of  the  Press  was  closely  connected  with  religious  tolera- 
tion. Hitherto  books  on  geology,  medicine,  and  philosophy  had  to 
be  licensed  by  the  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  legal  works  by  the 
lord  chancellor,  and  works  on  history  or  politics  by  a  secretary  of 
state.  The  Act  by  which  these  functionaries  were  made  censors  was 
only  a  temporary  measure,  renewable  at  stated  periods.  When  it 
expired  in  1695  it  was  not  renewed  ;  and  henceforward  freedom  of 
the  press  has  been  one  of  the  acknowledged  liberties  of  Englishmen. 

3.  Religious  Societies.1— The  S.P.C.K.— During  the  reign 
of  Charles  II..  and  owing  to  the  flagrant  immorality  and  profanity 
that  developed  so  alarmingly  after  the  Restoration,  two  London 
clergymen  (Dr.  Horneck  and  Mr.  Smythies)  made  a  special  effort  to 
prevent  young  Churchmen  from  straving  into  vicious  paths,  by 
establishing  associations  under  the  direction  of  a  clergyman.  Their 
guilds  were  to  be  of  a  strictly  devotional  character,  and"  their  prayers 

1  See  Ovtrtcns  Life  in  tht  English  Church,  1660-1714. 


198 


ILLUSTRATED   NOTES  ON 


those  of  the  Church  of  England  ;  but  the  lay  members  were  not 
allowed  to  recite  such  portions  of  the  liturgy  as  are  directed  to  be 
'  pronounced  by  the  priest  alone,'  like  the  '  Absolution.'  The 
members  met  weekly  for  mutual  assistance  and  consolation,  and 
were  bound  to  consider  the  wants  of  the  poor  ;  to  which  end  each 
member  brought  a  weekly  contribution  according  to  his  means.  In 
the  reign  of  James  II.,  and  for  fear  they  might  be  used  to  promote 
Kornanism,  these  societies  began  to  be  suspected  ;  though  without 
reason,  for  they  proceeded  to  still  more  zealous  works  of  piety  and 
love.  "  When  they  saw  the  Mass  celebrated  daily  in  the  chapels 
royal  and  elsewhere,  they  resolved,  in  a  spirit  of  laudable  emulation, 
to  set  up  daily  prayers  at  8  in  the  evening  at  St.  Clement  Danes  in 


OFFICES  OF  THE  S.P.C.K.,  NORTHUMBERLAND  AVENUE,  W.C. 


the  Strand;  where  they  never  wanted  a  full  and  affectionate  con- 
gregation. Their  earnest  anxiety  to  guard  themselves  from  declen- 
sion in  religion  secured  their  frequent  reception  of  the  Holy 
Communion,  and  their  carefulness  to  receive  it  with  unimpaired 
reverence  induced  them  to  set  forth  preparation  lectures  on  the 
Sunday  and  Friday  preceding  its  administration  at  many  churches 
in  town  ;  and,  not  content  with  receiving  the  sacrament  upon  the 
holy  days  of  the  Church,  they  were  in  the  habit  of  meeting  at  one 
another's  houses  on  the  nights  or  evenings  preceding,  in  order  to 
discourse  piously  upon  the  subject  matter  of  the  day."1  One  of  the 

1  Secrctan's  Life  of  Robert  Nelson. 


ENGLISH    CHCRCH    HISTORY.  199 

leaders  of  these  societies  was  Robert  Nelson,  son  of  a  London 
merchant,  who.  although  he  retired  temporarily  with  the  Non-jurors, 
soon  returned  to  active  work  among  his  friends  ;  and  in  his '  Companion 
for  the  Festivals  and  Fasts  of  the  Church  of  England  :  with  collects 
and  prayers  for  each  solemnity.'1  we  are  able  to  read  the  very 
words  in  which  some  of  their  meetings  were  conducted.  Many 
people  thought  that  these  societies  might  lead  to  schism,  and  envious 
people  endeavoured  to  suppress  them  ;  though  without  effect  until 
they  came  to  be  accused  of  Jacobite  tendencies,  and  wrongly  con- 
fused with  the  Societies  for  the  Reformation  of  Manners.  The  latter 
were  vigilance  societies,  founded  to  suppress  vice  by  the  legal  prose- 
cution of  offenders  against  the  moral  code.  Indeed  many  of  the 
members  were  magistrates  and  lawyers,  who  felt  called  upon  by 
the  growing  impunity  of  vice,  encouraged  in  high  places,  to  take 
special  action  ;  and  there  seems  reason  to  suppose  that  they  did  much 
to  stem  the  tide  of  blasphemy  and  licentiousness  which  was  then  so 
high.  It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  the  religious  troubles  of  the 
17th  century  had  been  due  to  a  want  of  accurate  knowledge  respect- 
ing the  dogmatic  teaching  of  the  Church  of  England.  Individual 
effort  was  powerless  to  dispel  this  baneful  cause  ;  but  just  before  the 
close  of  the  17th  century  a  means  was  provided  by  which  it  could  be 
lessened.  Out  of  the  devotional  societies  there  sprang  a  permanent 
Institution,  now  well  known  as  the  S.P.C.K.  It  was  founded  May  8, 
1698.  by  a  clergyman  named  Dr.  Bray,  and  four  communicant  laymen 
— Lord  Guildford,  Sir  H.  Mackworth,  Justice  Hook  and  Colonel 
Colchester — who  agreed  to  meet  and  consult  as  often  as  convenient. 
'  under  the  conduct  of  the  Divine  providence  and  assistance  to 
promote  Christian  knowledge.'  The  Society  soon  increased  in 
numbers,  Robert  Nelson  being  among  the  first  to  join,  and 
developed  its  working  powers,  both  at  home  and  abroad,  by 
establishing  elementary  day  schools  for  poor  children,  ministering  to 
the  sick  and  dying  in  the  hospitals,  establishing  evening  schools  for 
illiterate  adults,  reclaiming  the  criminal  classes,  producing  theological 
treatises,  publishing  religious  tracts  and  healthy  story-books  ;  endea- 
vouring to  promote  the  unity  of  Christendom,  and  supplying  religious 
ministrations  to  the  moving  multitudes  of  soldiers,  sailors  and 
emigrants  ;  besides  sending  the  gospel  message  to  our  Colonists  and 
their  heathen  neighbours.  In  1705  it  began  to  circulate  Bibles  and 
Prayer-books  at  a  cheap  rate  throughout  the  country  ;  a  work  which 
it  has  continued  ever  since,  and  greatly  developed.  In  1709  it  issued 
the  Prayer-book  in  Welsh,  and  a  Welsh  translation  of  the  Bible  nine 
years  later ;  since  when  it  has  been  actively  engaged  in  supplying 
vernacular  versions  of  the  Scriptures  and  Liturgy  to  assist  the 
missionaries  in  foreign  lands.2  In  recent  years  the  various  depart  - 
1  Still  published  by  the  S.P.C.K.,  lr. 

3  For  a  list  of  the  foreign  literature  of  the  Church  published  by  the  Society  at  the 
present  day  see  the  "  Official  Year  Book  of  the  Church  of  England,  1888." 


200  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

ments  of  its  work  have  greatly  increased  in  magnitude,  until  its 
influence  is  felt  throughout  the  world — in  every  English  parish,  every 
colonial  diocese,  and  every  foreign  missionary  station.  It  is  the 
firstborn  of  many  Societies  which  (upon  the  principle  of  TJXION, 
wherein  is  strength)  have  done  for  the  Church  of  England  in 
particular,  and  the  cause  of  Christianity  in  general,  invaluable 
service.  Over  and  over  again  its  work  has  grown  so  far  in  excess  of 
its  capacity  and  original  intentions,  that  new  Societies  have  sprung 
from  it  to  undertake  special  departments.  The  Charity  Schools  of 
the  18th  century,  a  very  exceptional  means  of  education  until  the 
S.P.C.K.  made  their  cause  its  own,  were  for  along  time  the  chief 
means  by  which  the  rudiments  of  scholarship  were  imparted  to  the 
children  of  the  poor.  In  1704  there  were  54  chanty  schools  in  and 
about  London,  and  one  of  the  most  pleasing  sights  of  that  time  was 
to  see  three  and  four  thousands  of  the  little  ones,  uniformly  and 
c'eanly  attired,  assembled  in  some  great  church  for  their  anniversary 
service.  They  may  be  considered  as  the  forerunners  of  our  National 
Schools  (sec  page  255),  and  before  the  19th  century  dawned  they 
h.ul  increased  to  500. 

4.  Church  Work  Abroad1— The  S.P.G-.— Every  year  the 
colonies  were  opening  out  new  fields  for  the  development  of  J.iriti.sli 
enterprise  and  British  trade  ;  and  it  became  a  very  important  ques- 
tion MS  to  how  those  engaj/ed  in  such  tra  le  c.ml  1  be  provided  with 
religious  ministrations.  We  have  seen  that  Virginia  became  a 
colony  for  Church  people,  and  that  the  Puritans  peopled  New 
Euglau  1,  in  the  days  of  Jam  s  I.  Maryland  became  a  Human 
Catholic  colony  in  1033  ;  and  Oliver  Ciomweil  acquired  Jamaica  for 
this  country  in  1655.  The  Hudson's  Bay  Company  was  chartered  in 
1671  to  trade  with  the  Indians  in  Princ-j  Hu perl's  Land  ;  and  the 
Quakers  founded  Pennsylvania  in  1682.  Meanwhile  the  East  India 
Company  had  so  greatly  increased  its  possessions  that  a  new  company 
was  founded  in  1698  ;  but  these  were  united  ten  years  later.  The 
Virginian  colonists  hud  all  along  maintained  a  few  resident  clergy  ; 
the  Long  Parliament  had  subsidised  the  New  England  missions 
among  the  North  American  Indians  ;  and  in  the  year  1662  the  spirit 
of  missionary  enterprise  was  accepted  by  the  Church  of  Ergland, 
when  it  inserted  in  the  Liturgy  '  The  Prayer  for  all  Conditions  of 
men  '  that  God  would  be  pleased  to  make  known  his  saving  he:lth 
unto  all  nations.  The  Hon.  Robert  Boyle,  a  director  of  the  East  India 
Company,  had  done  much  to  induce  that  Corporation  to  recognise 
its  spiritual  obligations  ;  and  had  even  offered  to  lead  a  party  01 
evangelists  to  New  England,  which  he  was  picvented  from  doing. 
Just  before  his  death  in  1(591  he  made  provision  at  his  own  cost 
for  the  annual  delivery  of  lectures  on  Christian  Evidences,  which 

1  See  Tucker's  English  Church  in  oilier  lands.    Lontnuans,  Is.  GJ. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY 


201 


should  prove  ihy  Christian  religion  against  Atheists.  Theists,  Pagans, 
Jews,  and  Mahometans  ;  and  be  assisting  to  all  companies  and 
encoura^ino-  them  in  any  undertakings  for  propagating  the  Christian 
reli°Win  foreign  parts.'  The  same  beneficent  layman  bequeathed 
the  residue  of  his  estate  to  the  still-flourishing  :  Christian  *  aitn 
Society  for  the  advancement  of  the  Christian  religion  amongst 
infidels  in  Virginia';  the  revenues  of  which  are  now  applied  to 
missions  in  the  West  Indies,  At  that  time  no  one  ever  thought  of 
colonial  or  missionary  bishops,  and  by  an  order  in  Council,  which 
dated  from  the  reign  of  Charles  II.,  all  Churchmen  abroad  were 

placed  under  the  episcopal 
direction  of  the  Bishop  of 
|j  London,  who,  in  1696,  ap- 
pointed  the  indefatigable 
Dr.  Bray  as  his  commissary 
to  Maryland  '  to  model 
that  infant  Church.'  It 
was  on  Dr.  Bray's  return 
from  a  first  inspection  of 
affairs  there  that  he  set 
about  the  formation  of 
the  S.P.C.K. ;  and  one  of 
the  first  resolutions  that 
society  had  laid  before  it 
was  his  '  scheme  for  pro- 
moting religion  in  the 
plantations.'  Knowing 
that  the  clergy  who  went 
abroad  '  were  likely  to  be 
of  the  poorer  sort,'  be 
started  a  fund  for  printing 
and  circulating  suitable 
books  among  them  (1697), 
a  plan  which  was  at  once 
applied  to  the  necessities 
of  the  home  clergy  as  well ; 
and  which  developed  into 
parochial  lending  libraries 
throughout  Great  Britain, 


THE   OLD   EAST   INDIA  HOUSE. 


through  the  instrumentality  of  a  Society  which  still  exists  under 
the  title  of  the  '  Associates  of  Dr.  Bray.'  In  1699  Dr.  Bray  went 
a^ain  to  Maryland,  and  returned  in  1701  ;  only  to  find  the  work 
of  the  S.P.C.K.  had  far  outgrown  its  ability,  or  rather  that  its 
constitution  was  not  adapted  for  missionary  propaganda.  At  his 
suggestion,  therefore,  Convocation  enquired  into  the  necessities  of 
Christianity  beyond  the  seas  ;  and  moved  Archbishop  Tenison  to 
obtain  from  the  Crown  a  charter  for  the  incorporation  of  the  Society 


202  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts,  otherwise  the 
'  S.P.G.',  which  should  relieve  the  S.P.C.K.  of  the  necessity  of  send- 
ing human  instruments  abroad  ;  though  the  latter  Society  still 
continued  to  be  responsible  for  providing  educational  machinery,  as 
it  is  to  this  day.  The  active  work  of  the  S.P.G.  commenced  June 
16,  1701  ;  when  it  arranged  for  missions  among  the  English  traders 
at  Archangel  and  Moscow  ;  following  this  up  by  sending  clergy  to 
America  in  1702,  and  Newfoundland  in  1703.  '  From  the  first,  it 
aimed  at  the  conversion  of  the  pagans  as  well  as  the  benefit  of 
Christian  emigrants  and  colonists  ;  but  its  income  was  very  limited, 
never  exceeding  £6,000  in  any  year  of  the  first  century  of  its 
existence.'  Several  attempts  were  made  to  found  an  American 
bishopric  in  the  early  part  of  the  18th  century  ;  but  the  difficulties 
seemed  so  insuperable  that  the  projects  fell  through  (see  page  268). 
The  income  of  the  S.P.G.  now  exceeds  £100,000  annually,  and  it 
employs  (1891)  672  clergy  in  every  quarter  of  the  globe,  162  of 
whom  are  natives  of  the  districts  where  they  labour. 

5.  The  Scotch  Church  Supplanted.— The  devotion  of  the 
Scotch  Church  to  the  Stuart  cause  caused  William  III.  to  look  upon 
it  with  disfavour,  especially  as  his  own  sympathies  were  with  the 
Presbyterians.  The  Cameronians  were  the  first  to  proclaim  the 
Prince  of  Orange  as  King  of  Scotland,  which  was  an  additional  reason 
for  his  friendship  with  the  Covenanters.  The  Scotch  Convention  which 
met  in  1689,  offered  the  crown  of  Scotland  to  William  and  Mary 
on  much  the  same  terms  as  the  English  had  done  ;  but  their  Declara- 
tion of  Eight  contained  the  additional  clause,  that  '  Prelacy  was  a 
great  and  insupportable  grievance';  and  the  last  clause  of  the 
coronation  oath  which  the  Scotch  commissioners  tendered  to  them 
bound  the  new  rulers  '  to  root  out  all  heretics  and  enemies  to  the 
true  worship  of  God.'  i.e.  according  to  the  covenant.  William  III. 
objected  to  this  and  said,  "  I  will  not  lay  myself  under  any  obligation 
to  be  a  persecutor  ;  "  though  when  the  commissioners  assured  him 
that  this  was  not  required,  both  he  and  Mary  took  the  oath.  But  in 
the  meantime  the  whole  of  the  Lowlands  presented  a  wild  scene  of 
mob  violence.  The  Presbyterians  shewed  themselves  more  intolerant 
than  ever  by  forcibly  ejecting  ('  rabbling '  they  called  it)  the  episcopal 
clergy,  oftentimes  with  bloodshed  ;  and  it  was  with  difficulty 
that  order  could  be  restored.  In  July,  1702,  the  Scotch  Convention 
formally  disestablished  Scotch  Episcopacy,  and  appropriated  to 
Presbyterian  uses  all  the  old  churches  of  Scotland,  together  with 
the  tithes  and  revenues  that  had  hitherto  belonged  to  the  Episcopal 
Church,  which  have  ever  since  remained  in  the  possession  of  the 
Presbyterian  body.  Although  William  III.  assented  to  this  act  he 
desired  a  general  toleration  throughout  Scotland  for  all  other  re- 
ligious communities  except  the  Romanists,  but  this  the  Scottish 
Parliament  refused  to  allow.  Many  of  the  Scottish  gentry  who  were 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY. 


203 


also  Episcopalian,  had  fled  to  the  highlands  and  raised  the  standard 
of  James  against  William  ;  and  stern  measures  were  adopted  by  the 
latter  to  repress  the  rising.  Excuse  it  how  men  will  the  written 
order  "  to  extirpate  Macfan  of  Glencoe  and  his  tribe,"  superscribed 
and  countersigned  by  William  III.  must  ever  remain  a  stain  upon 
his  character.  Secretly,  and  under  the  guise  of  friendship,  a  party  of 
William's  troops  und'er  Captain  Campbell  obtained  hospitality  with 
the  clan  thus  devoted  to  the  sword  ;  and  after  a  sojourn  of  fifteen 
days,  during  which  they  received  much  kindness  and  civility,  the 
guests  fell  upon  their  entertainers  in  the  grey  dawn  of  a  wintry  day 
Feb.  13,  1692,  and  put  them  to  the  sword. 

1  The  hand  that  mingled  in  the  meal, 
At  midnight  drew  the  felon's  steel.' 

For  the  rest  of  William's  reign  Scotland  was  comparatively  tran- 
quil ;  but  in  1703,  when  the  Princess  Anne  had  succeeded  William 
on  the  English  throne,  there  was  again  considerable  trouble  ;  caused 
chiefly  by  the  '  Act  of  Security,'  which 
corresponded  with  the  English  Act  of 
Settlement.  That  there  should  be  no  mis- 
understanding, the  Scottish  Parliament 
made  a  solemn  declaration  that  Presby- 
terianism  was  the  only  true  Church  ;  and 
refused  consent  for  the  successors  of  Queen 
Anne  to  succeed  to  the  Scottish  throne 
unless  securities  were  given  for  the  Pres- 
byterian religion,  and  for  an  equitable 
share  in  commercial  privileges.  This  became 
Scottish  law  in  1704,  Queen  Anne  being 
induced  to  give  her  assent  in  order  to 
bring  about  the  union  of  the  kingdoms  ; 
for  although  one 
monarch  had  reigned 
over  the  whole  of 
Britain,  ever  since 
James  I.  ascended 
the  English  throne, 
Scotland  and  Eng- 
land were  distinct 
kingdoms  with  separ- 
ate legislatures.  The 
union  of  the  king- 
doms was  brought 
about  in  1706,  though 


THK    OLD   CTTFBCH,  PERTH   (tee page  107). 


not  without  great 
opposition  from  the 
Scots  ;  who  had  all 


204 

to  lose,  and  little  to  gain,  as  they  thought.  There  was  a  natura. 
objection  to  the  surrender  of  national  independence  to  a  kingdom 
which  they  had  resisted  for  centuries  ;  and  the  trading  classes  feared 
that  they  would  lose  advantages  when  Edinburgh  should  cease  to  be 
a  capital.  The  Jacobites  foresaw  the  certain  ruin  of  the  Stuart 
cause  ;  and  the  Covenanters  feared  the  possible  loss  of  Presbyter- 
ianism.  English  Churchmen,  too,  were  in  no  mind  to  ally  themselves 
again  with  a  Presbyterian  body.  The  religious  difficulty  was  got 
over  by  the  understanding  that,  although  there  should  be  only  one 
state — with  a  legislative  body  i:i  London  to  which  the  Scotch  should 
send  a  given  number  of  representatives — there  should  be  no  changes 
made  in  either  national  Chtuch.  The  Act  of  Union  on  these  terms 
passed  the  English  Parliament  in  1707  ;  and  a  uevv  national  flag  was 
formed  by  a  conjunction  of  the  crosses  of  St.  Andrew  and  St. 
George.  When,  later  on,  Ireland  was  united  with  England  the  red 
cross  of  St.  Patrick  was  laid  upon  the  white  cross  of  St.  Andrew,  and 
this  is  known  as  the  Union  Jack.  The  Scotch  Episcopal  Church 
continued  to  be  dowii-trodden  for  many  years,  though  recently  it 
has  wonderfully  revived.  A  difficulty  had  arisen  in  1689  as  to  "the 
patronage  of  the  established  Presbyterian  Churches  ;  Because  the 
patrons  were  chiefly  the  landed  gentry,  who  were  for  the  most  part 
Episcopalians ;  they  were  therefore  deprived  of  their  rights  as 
patrons.  These  rights  were  restored  to  them  in  1712,  but  great 
ill-feeling  resulted  between  different  parties  in  the  Presbyterian 
Church  ;  which  grew  in  intensity  as  years  rolled  by,  and  led  to  the 
great  secession  from  the  Established  Kirk  in  1843,  when  the  Free 
Kirkers  who  came  out  set  up  a  Church  of  their  own.  An  attempt 
was  made  to  heal  the  breach  in  187-1,  \\heu  the  ancient  patron  age 
was  transferred  once  more  to  the  male  communicants  of  each  con- 
gregation, but  the  Free  Kirkers  seemed  to  be  in  no  mind  to  return 
whence  they  came  out,  and  therefore  the  schism  continues. 

6.  Queen  Anne's  Bounty. — Speaking  generally,  the  clergy  of 
Queen  Anne's  reign  were  exceedingly  poor.  The  value  of  many 
benefices  had  been  little  more  than  nominal  since  the  dissolution 
of  monasteries,  and  consequent  permanent  alienation  of  rectorial 
tithes,  had  deprived  them  of  the  major  part  of  their  ancient  endow- 
ments. We  have  referred  (pages  30  and  83)  to  the  appropriation  by 
the  Crown  of  the  annates  and  first  fruits  ;  the  payment  of  which 
still  further  impoverished  the  incumbents.  More  than  half  the 
benefices  were  of  less  value  than  £100  a  year  ;  and  as  the  first  fruits 
and  tenths  amounted  in  the  aggregate  to  more  than  £16,000  a  year, 
it  was  a  very  considerable  tax.  Queen  Anne  was  most  anxious  to 
show  her  hearty  acceptance  of  the  spirit  of  her  coronation  oath  by 
liberally  patronising  all  Church  work.  Bishop  Burnet  deserves  the 
credit  of  having  persuaded  her  to  accede  to  the  tarr)y  net  of  justice 
by  which  the  first  fruits  and  tenths,  though  still  obiigcu  to  be  paid, 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY.  205 

might  be  transferred  to  a  common  fund,  administered  by  Churchmen 
for  the  benefit  of  poor  livings,  in  the  exuberance  of  their  gratitude 
the  fund  was  called  by  Churchmen  Queen  Aune'x  Bounty  :  it  having 
been  announced  that  she  had  accedel  to  the  measure  iu  celebration 
of  her  birthday  (Feb.  6.  17u4).  But  there  was  an  immediate  benefit 
to  the  clergy  by  the  further  announcement  that  all  arrears  should  be 
remitted.  The  fund  so  raised  has  been  greatly  added  to  by  private 
munificence  since  Queen  Anne's  day — e.g.  la  the  Church  of  Ellen- 
hall,  there  is  a  memorial  tablet  wliich  states  that — 'Mr.  John  Webb 
by  his  will  gave  the  sum  of  £500  to  the  governois  of  Queen  Anne's 
bounty,  the  interest  thereof  to  be  paid  ha  f-yearly  to  the  perpetual 
curate  iVr  ever  in  augmentation  of  his  income'  Those  who  iesi re 
to  benefit  others  after  their  own  decease,  infiuite'.y  piefer  to  place 
their  donations  in  the  safe  keeping  of  some  respectable  corporation 
which  is  willing  to  act  as  their  trustee.  Q.A.B.  holds  four  and  a 
half  millions  of  such  trust  money.  Queen  Anne  did  not  give  any- 
thing to  the  Church  out  of  her  private  purse  or  the  public  funds  ; 
nor  does  Parliament  grant  to  the  monarch  any  indemnity  for  sur- 
rendering the  right  to  what  was  considered  a  succession  duty  upon 
livings  as  some  have  erroneously  stated  ;  because,  to  take  the  act 
passed  at  the  accession  of  our  Queen  Victoria  as  an  example,  which 
fixes  Her  Majesty's  private  income,  there  is  not  a  single  word  said 
about  any  money  being  granted  in  consideration  of  the  surrender  of 
the  first  fruits  and  tenths. 

7.  The  Impeachment  of  Sacheverell. — Queen  Anne's  reign 
is  noted  for  the  rise  of  party  government  in  civil  affairs.  Previously, 
it  had  been  the  custom  for  the  monarch  to  choose  chief  advisers 
from  Whigs  as  well  as  Tories,  though  there  might  be  a  majority  of 
one  or  the  other  ;  but  it  now  became  customary  for  the  ministry  to 
be  selected  from  one  party  only,  while  the  other  party  formed" the 
opposition  ;  as  it  is  to  this  day.  All  the  Tories  were  Church  people, 
as  indeed  were  most  of  the  Whigs  ;  but  as  the  latter  were  more 
inclined  to  favour  toleration  of  Dissent,  the  Nonconformists  joined 
their  party.  Bishop  Burnet  tells  us  also  that  the  party  names 
'  High  Church  '  and  '  Low  Church  '  came  into  use  at  the  same  time  ; 
but  his  explanation  of  the  differences  between  them  shews  also  that 
High  Church  was  synonymous  with  '  Tory.'  and  that  Low  Church 
meant  the  same  as  '  Whig.'  Queen  Anne's  first  government  was 
chiefly  Whig,  and  became  entirely  so ;  its  leading  spirit  being  the 
great  and  victorious  general  the  Duke  <f  Marlborvvgh  ;  who  exer- 
cised despotic  sway  over  the  conscience  of  the  queen  by  means 
of  his  wife.  But  another  lady,  Abigail  Hill,  who  belonged  to  the 
Tory  party,  managed  to  supplant  the  Duchess  of  Marlborough  in  the 
councils  of  the  queen  ;  and  moved  the  latter  to  show  more  favour 
to  the  Tory  party.  Newspapers  were  not  then  allowed  to  report 
Parliamentary  debates,  and  public  opinion  was  formed  by  pain- 


206  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

phleteers  and  political  parsons.  The  great  Whig  pamphleteer  was 
Daniel  Defoe,  the  author  of  '  Robinson  Crusoe  ';  and  his  rival  in  the 
Tory  interest  was  Jonathan  Swift,  the  Dean  of  St.  Patrick's,  and 
author  of  '  Gulliver's  Travels."  These  spent  their  time  in  satirising 
public  men  and  events  of  the  day.  Bishop  Burnet  constantly 
preached  political  sermons  in  the  Whig  interest  ;  and  on  the  other 
hand,  a  chaplain  of  St.  Saviour's  Priory,  Dr.  Henry  Sacheverell, 
tried  his  hand  in  abusing  the  Whig  government  in  his  pulpit  utter- 
ances. He  preached  a  violent  sermon  before  the  Lord  Mayor  from 
the  text,  "  In  perils  among  false  brethren,"  and  another  in  Derby,  at 
the  assizes  ;  both  of  which  roundly  denounced  the  government, 
much  to  the  delight  of  the  Tories,  who  published  the  sermons,  and 
scattered  them  broadcast,  with  a  view  of  influencing  the  coming 
elections.  The  angry  Whigs  impeached  the  doctor  before  the  House 
of  Lords,  and  a  great  state  trial  was  the  result. 

'  High '  and  '  Low,' 

Watchwords  of  party,  on  all  tongues  were  rife  ; 
As  if  a  Church,  though  sprung  from  Heaven,  must  owe 
To  opposites  and  fierce  extremes,  her  life — 
Not  to  the  golden  mean,  and  quiet  flow 
Of  truths  that  soften  hatred,  temper  strife. —  Wordsworth. 

Public  opinion  was  all  in  favour  of  Sacheverell,  and  even  the  queen 
did  not  diguise  her  sympathy  with  him  ;  for  she  went  down  daily  to  the 
trial  in  her  sedan  chair,  along  side  which  the  people  ran  and  shouted, 
'  Sacheverell  and  High  Church !  we  hope  your  Majesty  is  for  Dr. 
Sacheverell.'  The  court  condemned  him  to  suspension  from  his 
benefice  for  three  years,  and  his  sermons  to  be  burned  by  the  common 
hangman.  This  comparatively  mild  sentence  after  three  weeks'  trial 
was  received  with  unbounded  glee  by  the  multitudes,  because 
it  was  a  virtual!  triumph  for  the  Tories.  But  the  mob  were 
not  satisfied  with  their  'moral  victory.'  They  had  been  reading 
Dean  Swift's  clever  satires  on  Whig  appointments  to  bishoprics, 
and  really  thought  that  the  Church  was  in  great  danger  from 
the  evident  sympathy  of  the  Government  with  Nonconformity. 
The  mob  manifested  its  glee  in  a  very  barbarous  and  unjustifi- 
able way.  Not  satisfied  with  lighting  bonfires  all  over  London, 
they  attacked  the  meeting  houses  of  Dissenters  and  pulled  out 
the  seats  to  replenish  the  flames  ;  while  the  Guards  who  were  called 
out  to  quell  the  riots,  refused  to  disperse  the  mob.  Sacheverell 
was  now  loaded  with  honours  and  preferments  ;  and  his  progress 
through  the  country  to  take  possession  of  them  was  made  the  occa- 
sion for  political  demonstrations  in  his  favour.  Queen  Anne  then 
dissolved  Parliament,  and  writs  were  issued  for  a  general  election. 
The  Tory  candidates  were  nearly  everywhere  victorious,  and  the 
Marlborough  faction  was  ousted  from  the  Government.  This  was 
the  only  incident  of  note  'luring  Queen  Anne'3  reign  in  which  civil 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY. 


207 


affairs  were  affected  by  the  action  of  the  clergy  ;  but  it  sufficed  to 
bring  the  Church  a  greater  measure  of  prosperity  than  it  had  known 
for  centuries. 

8.  Popularity  of  the  Church.  —  Canon  Overton  says : 
'  nothing  marks  more  strongly  the  popularity  of  the  Church  at  this 
period  than  the  evident  fact  that  no  one  had  the  least  chance  of  a 
hearing  unless  he  professed  a  friendship  for,  or  at  least  no  hostility 
to  her.  Those  who  were  her  bitterest  enemies  assumed  an  apolo- 
getical  tone.'  And  again  :  '  The  fact  is.  that  though  it  is  exceedingly 


ST.   PAUL'S  CATHEDBAL. 


doubtful  whether  the  State  was  of  much  use  to  the  Church,  there  is 
no  doubt  that  the  Church  was  of  very  great  use  to  the  State  ;  it  was 
a  name  to  conjure  with,  and  it  was  used  accordingly.'1  But  the 
popularity  of  the  Church  shewed  itself  in  various  other  ways,  and 
notably  in  the  restoration  and  rebuilding  of  the  churches  which  had 
been  so  sadly  devastated  during  the  Commonwealth.  But  all  work  of 

1  Life  in  the  English  Church,  Longmans, :14/-.    A"  recent  work  which  throws 
much  light  upon  the  human  interest  of  this  important  period  of  Church  History. 


208  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

this  kind  faded  into  insignificance  compared  with  the  rebuilding  of 
St.  Paul's  Cathedral.  The  foundation  stone  had  been  laid  June  21, 
1675  ;  and  the  choir  opened  for  worship  in  1697  ;  but  the  nave  and 
transepts  were  not  completed  until  several  years  after,  while  the  top 
stone  was  not  affixed  until  1710.  We  regret  to  say  that,  in  the  reign 
of  William  III.,  Sir  Christopher  Wren  was  first  put  on  half  pay,  and 
then  dismissed  from  his  post  of  surveyor,  because  people  considered 
that  the  work  progressed  too  slowly.  The  great  dome  of  St.  Paul's 
is  somewhat  of  a  deception.  There  are  in  fact  two  domes,  an  inner 
and  an  outer.  The  central  lantern  and  spire  which  we  see  from  the 
outside  does  not  appear  to  be  supported  by  either  ;  but  by  a  stone 
cone  of  masonry  between  the  domes  which  rises  from  the  lower  storey 
of  the  drum.  St.  Paul's  Cathedral  is  a  kind  of  pantheon  for  the  heroes 
of  England,  and  among  the  greatest  of  those  buried  there  is  the 
master  architect  himself.  There  is  no  gorgeous  mausoleum  erected 
to  his  memory,  but  only  a  simple  tablet  on  the  portico  of  the  north 
t  rai  sept,  bidding  those  who  desire  a  monument  for  Wren  to  'look  around.' 
The  consecration  of  St.  Paul's  Cathedral  was  a  very  grand  function 
indeed  ;  it  occurred  soon  after  Sacheverell's  impeachment,  and  the 
queen  went  in  great  state  to  the  ceremony.  Her  statue  has  been 
lately  re-erected  outside  its  western  front  in  recognition  of  her 
interest  in  the  work.  The  total  cost  of  St.  Paul's  Cathedral  was 
£717,661  10s.  5d.  In  1711  an  Act  was  passed  by  the  new  Tory 
g  »vernment  (9  Anne,  c.  1)  making  provision  for  the  building  of  fifty- 
t  \vo  '  new  churches  in  or  near  the  populous  cities  of  London  and 
Westminster  and  the  suburbs  thereof.'  The  needful  funds  were  to 
be  provided  out  of  the  city  coal  dues  as  before  (see  page  172)  and 
th<\y  were  all  to  be  built  within  a  given  time  ;  but  for  some  unex- 
plained reason  the  project  collapsed,  for  only  twelve  were  built,  and 
three  or  four  others  repaired,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  time 
limifed  for  their  building  had  been  considerably  extended.  The  style 
in  which  the  twelve  were  built  was  very  like  that  of  Wren,  though 
he  was  too  old  at  the  time  to  take  an  active  part  in  the  work. 
St.  Mary-le-Strand,  and- St.  Martin's  in  the  Fields  at  Charing  Cross, 
may  be  taken  as  examples  of  the  churches  erected  under  this  Act. 
but  although  the  coal  dues  were  in  part  appropriated  towards  their 
edification,  private  munificence  had  a  very  considerable  share  in 
their  adornment. 

9.  Hardships  of  Nonconformity. — A  state  paper  published 
in  the  early  part  of  the  reign  of  William  III.  estimates  the  religious 
divisions  of  the  population  thus  :  Church  people'  4,951,508  ;  Dis- 
senters 217,152  ;  and  Romanists  27,712.  In  Queen  Anne's  reign  the 
proportion  of  Nonconformists  could  not  have  been  much  more.  One 
of  the  first  measures  introduced  in  Parliament  on  the'accession  of 
Queen  Anne  was  the  '  Occasional  Conformity  Bill.'  The^Test  Act 
(page  171)  prevented  anyone  holding  positions  under  the  Crown 


E^GLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  209 

anless  they  received  the  Holy  Communion  at  stated  periods.  It 
soon  became  known  that  many  civil  servants  qualified  themselves  for 
office  by  fulfilling  the  strict  letter  of  the  Test  Act,  but  infringed  its 
spirit  by  attending  Dissenting  meeting  houses  at  all  other  times. 
These  were  called  '  occasional  conformists,'  and  were  much  disliked 
by  the  extreme  Tories.  T%»  Occasional  Conformity  Bill  proposed  to 
inflict  heavy  fines  on  such  double  dealing.  It  passed  through  the 
House  of  Commons  in  1702,  but  the  Lords  so  altered  its  provisions 
that  it  fell  through.  The  next  year  it  was  again  introduced  in  the 
Commons  but  rejected  in  the  Lords.  In  1 704  it  was  again  brought 
forward  and  the  Commons  incorporated  it  with  the  Bill  of  Supply 
which  the  House  of  Lords  could  not  alter.  This  was  declared  an 
illegal  method  of  silencing  the  legislative  functions  of  the  House  of 
Peers  ;  and  caused  the  measure  to  lose  ground  in  the  country,  until 
the  affair  of  Sacheverell  gave  Tories  a  majority  in  Parliament.  In 
1711  the  Bill  was  again  introduced  in  an  altered  form,  and  under  a 
new  name,  when  it  passed  almost  without  opposition.  Two  years  later 
there  was  another  general  election  on  account  of  the  war  which  the 
Tories  had  brought  to  an  end  ;  and  with  the  result  that  a  large 
minority  of  Whig  members  were  returned.  In  May  1714  the  Schism 
Act  was  submitted  to  this  new  Parliament  and  passed  the  Commons 
by  a  majority  of  276  against  126  votes,  although  it  only  obtained 
acceptance  in  the  Lords  by  the  narrow  majority  of  8.  It  forbade 
the  keeping  of  public  or  private  schools  by  any  persons  who  refused 
to  conform  to  the  National  Church  or  failed  to  obtain  license  from 
the  bishop  of  the  diocese  in  which  the  school  was  situated  ;  but  no 
licenses  were  to  be  granted  by  the  bishops  unless  the  applicants 
could  show  that  they  had  fulfilled  the  provisions  of  the  Test  Act. 
This  would  have  put  an  end  to  Nonconformist  schools,  but  happily 
it  was  never  put  in  force  ;  for  Anne  died  on  the  very  day  that  it  was 
to  take  effect  (August  1,  1714).  "Both  the  Occasional"  Conformity 
Bill  and  the  Schism  Act  were  repealed  Feb.  18,  1719.  Daniel 
Defoe  travestied  the  Tory  policy  with  such  verisimilitude  in  his 
•  Shortest  Way  with  the  Dissenters  '  that  it  was  at  first  accepted  with 
enthusiasm  ;  but  when  he  published  a  key  to  the  satire,  and  the 
Tories  found  how  artfully  they  were  entrapped,  the  writer  was 
pilloried  for  sedition  and  put  in  prison.  But  he  was  released  the 
next  year.  Defoe's  pamphlet  is  really  an  argument  in  favour  of 
complete  toleration  ;  for  he  also  attacks  his  own  friends  the  Dis- 
senters, because  when  they  bad  the  power  they  did  not  respect  their 
opponents.  Now,  '  like  the  cock  in  the  stable,  they  are  quite  willing  to 
propose  to  the  horses  let  us  all  keep  our  legs  quiet.' l  It  was  perhaps 
to  be  expected  that  the  Nonconformists  would  be  despised  while  the 
Church  was  in  high  favour  ;  but  we  should  be  careful  not  to  test 
the  customs  of  those  times  by  the  standard  of  our  own  day,  either 

i  Morris's  Age  of  Anne-,  Longmans,  zs.dd 


210  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

with  respect  to  the  relative  positions  and  treatment  of  Noncon- 
formists and  Churchgoers,  or  with  reference  to  the  disorderly  habits 
which  are  reported  of  those  who  were  most  regular  in  their  attend- 
ouce  at  Church. 

10.  Pews  in  Churches.  It  is  to  be  feared  that  the  Church 
people  were  too  much  absorbed  in  the  political  questions  of 
the  day  to  pay  much  regard  to  reverent  behaviour  in  Divine 
worship.  It  was  a  common  practice  for  men  to  wear  their  hats 
in  church,  though  for  the  matter  of  that  they  wore  them  every- 
where until  powdered  wigs  came  in  vogue.  The  excessive  levity 
of  the  Court  ladies  during  service  time  provoked  the  ire  of  Bishop 
Burnet.  His  complaint  to  Queen  Anne  was  thus  transposed  by  a 
satirist : 

'  Then  pray  condescend  such  disorders  to  end, 
And  to  the  ripe  vineyard  the  labourers  send, 
To  build  up  the  seats  :  that  the  beauties  may  see, 
The  face  of  no  brawling  pretender  but  me.' 

Here  is  an  obvious  reference  to  the  high  pews  which  had  then  become 
fashionable.  The  well-to-do  had  appropriated  privileged  enclosures 
to  themselves  and  their  families  in  the  parish  churches,  just  as 
others  now  do  when  they  lease  portions  of  the  Albert  Hall.  They 
would  fit  up  their  pew  or  their  gallery  in  the  most  approved  style 
of  upholstery  and  wood  carving,  whilst  the  poor  had  to  make  shift 
with  the  meanest  accommodation.  By  the  end  of  the  1 8th  century 
there  was  scarcely  a  parish  church  throughout  the  land  which  did 
not  contain  one  or  more  of  these  family  pews,  the  tallest  and  most 
elegantly  fitted  being  reserved  for  the  most  notable  residents  ;  while 
even  the  churchwardens  had  their  stately  pen,  where  they  could 
obtain  an  uninterrupted  view  of  the"  garishly  gilt  inscription  which 
told  that  the  edifice  had  been  repaired  and  beautified — i  e.,  white- 
washed and  made  hideous — during  their  tenure  of  office.  Many  of  these 
pews  continued  so  long  in  the  possession  of  certain  families  or 
occupants  of  manor  houses,  that  it  was  supposed  they  were  held  by 
prescriptive  right ;  and  faculties  were  granted  by  the  diocesan 
registrars  which  made  it  almost  impossible  to  dispossess  the  holders. 
Although  the  rich  were  eager  to  claim  for  themselves  a  share  in  the 
misappropriation  of  the  area  of  the  parish  churches,  they  were  by 
no  means  so  eager  to  occupy  the  space  allotted  for  their  use  ;  and 
woe  betide  any  poor  creature  who  trespassed  upon  their  preserves.  Sir 
Christopher  Wren  much  desired  that  there  should  be  no  pews  in  the 
churches  that  he  built  ;  but  he  records  '  there  is  no  stemming  the 
tide  of  profit  of  pew  keepers  especially  since  by  pews  in  the  chapels 
of  ease  the  minister  is  chiefly  supported.'  And  when  the 
scheme  of  building  fifty-two  new  churches  was  started,  he  was  almost 
pathetic  in  his  protest  that,  '  a  church  should  not  be  so  filled  with 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY. 


211 


PULPIT   AND   PEW.  t?mp.  QUEEN   ANNE. 


pews,  but  that  the  poor 
may  have  room  to 
stand  and  sit  in  the 
alleys,  for  to  them 
equally  is  the  gospel 
preached .'  The  idea  that 
the  tenancy  of  par- 
ticular houses  in  a 
parish  includes  the 
right  to  have  reserved 
pews  in  its  church  has 
now  become  exploded ; 
and  it  is  much  more 
in  accordance  with 
the  spirit  of  Christian- 
ity that  there  should 
be  no  distinction  of 
persons  '  within  the 
Church's  gate.'  At  any 
rate  men  should  not 
be  allowed  to  parade 
their  superior  dignity 
and  larger  possessions 
by  occupying  seats 
which,  while  distin- 
guishing them,  obscure 
the  poor  man's  vision. 
Happily  these  are  now 
nearly  all  done  away. 


CHAPTER     XXVII.     (A.D.    1714-1830) 
THE   GEORGIAN   ERA. 

"As  to  the  sandy  desert  fountains  are, 
With  palm-groves  shaded  at  wide  intervals  ; 
Such  to  this  British  isle  her  Christian  fanes, 
Each  linked  to  each  for  kindred  services ;  .  .  .  . 
Where  a  few  villagers  on  bended  knees 
Find  solace  which  a  busy  world  disdains." — Wordsworth 

1.  The  Silencing  of  Convocation.— Reference  wai  made  on 
page  197  to  the  Comprehension  Bill,  which  failed  to  obtain  a  hearing  in 
the  House  of  Commons  because  it  had  not  been  previously  submitted 
to  the  Church's  legislative  body  of  Convocation.  William  III.  admitted 
the  mistake,  and  hastened  to  complete  the  representation  of  the 

H  2 


212  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

English    constitution    by  summoning   Convocation    to  debate   the 
measure.      It  is  customary  on  the  assembling  of  the  Church's  legis- 
lature, as  in  Parliament,  for  the  members  to  vote  a  loyal  address  to 
the  king  in  reply  to  his  summons.     The  Upper  House  of  Convocation 
was  then  lacking  in  dignity  and  influence  owing  to  the  absence  of 
the  Non-juring  bishops  ;  and  when  it  had  drawn  up  the  address  the 
Lower  House  refused  to  adopt  some  of  its  phrases,  especially  one 
which  gave  the  title  of  '  Protestant '  to  the  Church  of  England,  as 
though  she  were  on    a   par    with  the    foreign    and     Presbyterian 
communities  which  had  broken  away  from  Catholic  traditions  and 
appropriated  to  themselves  that  distinguishing  prefix.      The  Bishops 
were  obliged  to  yield  the  point,  though  there  ensued  a  very  unedify- 
ing  conflict  between  the  Upper  and  Lower  Houses  for  a  long  time. 
When  the  comprehension  scheme  was  submitted  to  the  Lower  House 
they  declined  to  have  anything  to  do  with  it  on  the  ground  that  the 
Church  of   England  needed  no  alteration,  whereupon,  through  the 
influence  of  Dr.   Tillotson,  whom  William  III.  had  marked  out  to 
succeed  Bancroft  in  the  primacy,  Convocation  was  prorogued,  and  not 
allowed  to  meet  again  while  Tillotson  ruled.     There  can  be  no  doubt 
that  the  action  of  the   Lower  House  of    Convocation  saved  the 
Church  of  England  and   her  formularies  from  being  ^stultified  and 
mutilated.      Had  the  proposed  comprehension  scheme  been  agreed 
to  there  would  have  been  a  most  lamentable  separation  from  the 
Church  on  the  part  of  those  who  appreciated  apostolic  doctrine  and 
fellowship,  which  must  have  increased  the  number  of   Non-jurors 
and  shaken  the  constitutional  foundation  which  we  now  owe  to  the 
Revolution.      It  was  not  until  1701  that  Convocation  met  again,  and 
in  the  interval  there  was  much  controversy  respecting  the  privileges 
of  the  Lower  House  ;  the  proctors  claiming  that  they  stood  in  the 
same  relations  to  the  Upper  House  as  the  House  of  Commons  did  to 
the  House  of  Lords.      Dr.  Tenison  had  succeeded  Tillotson  as  arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury,  and  there  was  unseemly  strife  between  him  and 
the  proctors  because  he  claimed  to  have  a  right  of  proroguing  the  Lower 
House,  which  they  denied  on  the  ground  that  the  Lord  Chancellor 
cannot  prorogue  the  House  of  Commons.    In  Queen  Anne's  time  the 
disputes  between  the  Upper  and  the  Lower  Houses  increased,  owing  to 
the  fact  that  the  majority  of  the  bishops  had  been  nominated  for  their 
sympathies  with  the  Whig  interest  and  favoured  the  Dissenters;  whence 
arose  the  cry  of  '  the  Church  in  danger,'  that  increased  to  a  roar  when 
Sacheverell  was  impeached.     About  the  same  time  one  Dr.  Hoadley 
gave  utterance  in  his  sermons  to  what  were  considered  startling 
opinions,  which  helped  to  increase  the  fears  of  the  Lower  House  ; 
because  the  bishops  made  no  attempt  to  inhibit  him  from  preaching. 
He  was  an  extreme  advocate  of  what  is  called  Latitudinarianism, 
which    favoured  or  palliated  anti-Christian  and   infidel  opinions. 
Continual  prorogations  of  Convocation  prevented  any  official  con- 
demnation of  these  opinions  ;  and  Hoadley  became  the  champion  of 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY.  213 

the  Whigs  as  Sacheverell  had  been  of  the  Tories,  because  he  boldly 
denounced  the  divine  right  of  kings  through  which  the  Jacobites 
were  striving  to  restore  the  Stuarts  to  the  throne.  In  1714  the  Whigs 
came  into  office  again,  and  soon  after  Hoadley  was  made  bishop  of 
Bangor  ;  from  which  official  position  he  published  a  book  which 
denied  the  value  of  episcopacy,  and  the  need  of  any  particular  form 
of  belief,  which  was  followed  up  by  a  sermon  that  denied  the  exis- 
tence of  a  visible  Church.  Anything  more  disgraceful,  coming  from 
a  man  who  accepted  high  office  and  emolument  in  a  Church  which 
held  that  the  tenets  he  denied  were  of  vital  necessity,  could  not  well 
be  conceived.  High  Church  and  Low  Church  agreed  in  denouncing 
the  heretical  bishop,  but  the  government  which  appointed  him  was 
determined  to  uphold  their  nominee  at  all  costs.  When  Con- 
vocation met  in  May  1717  the  Lower  House  unanimously  censured 
Hoadley's  writings,  whereupon  the  government  prorogued  Convoca- 
tion be'fore  the  Upper  House  had  time  to  confirm  the  censure  ;  anc 
refused  to  allow  it  to  meet  again  for  the  despatch  of  business.  Hence- 
forward, and  until  the  year  1850.  although  Convocation  was  formally 
called  together  when  new  Parliaments  were  elected,  it  was  not 
allowed  to  exercise  its  undoubted  right  of  promoting  legislation  for  the 
needs  of  the  Church  of  England.  To  this  arbitrary  interference  with 
her  ancient  prerogatives— for  the  Church's  right  to  assemble  in  Council 
is  older  by  centuries  than  the  English  Parliament — may  be  traced  the 
greater  part  of  the  troubles  that  afterwards  came  upon  her.  As 
Canon  Perry  pointedly  states  :'  ;iThe  Church,  denied  the  power  of 
expressing  "her  wants  and  grievances,  and  of  that  assertion 
of  herself  in  her  corporate  capacity  which  the  constitution 
had  provided  for  h'er,  was  assaulted  at  their  will  by  unscrupu- 
lous ministers  of  the  Crown,  and  feebly  defended  by  Latitudinarian 
bishops  in  an  uncongenial  assembly.  Her  ministers  might  now  give 
utterance  to  the  most  heretical,  and -even  blasphemous  teaching, 
without  fear  of  censure,  and  there  remained  no  agency  for  altering 
and  adjusting  her  system  to  meet  the  varying  requirements  and 
opportunities  of  the  times." 

2.  Calm  in  the  Church.— Queen  Anne  had  died  in  1714  ;  and 
although  she  had  been  anxious  that  her  half  brother,  whom  Mary  of 
Modena  had  borne  to  James  IT.,  should  succeed  her  on  the  throne, 
the  fear  the  nation  had  of  Jesuitry  made  it  imperative  for  the 
trovL-rnment  to  proclaim  the  son  of  the  Electress  Sophia  as  king,  and 
that  was  why  the  Lutheran  prince,  George  I.,  a  foreigner  by  birth  and 
speech,  ascended  the  throne  without  opposition,  thus  introducing  a 
new  line  of  kings.  Though  we  may  regard  his  succession  with 
satisfaction,  when  we  consider  that  it  saved  our  land  from  a  restora- 
tion of  papal  errors  and  intolerance,  it  cannot  be  denied  that  the 

1  Student's  Church  History,  Vol.  II.,  rape  f  35 


214 


ILLUSTRATED^  NOTES  ON 


Church  of  England  had  to  suffer  a  long  period  of  neglect  as  part  of 
the  bargain.  The  four  Georges  reigned  for  115  years,  during  which 
period  the  life  of  the  Church  seemed  paralysed.  George  I.  inaugu- 
rated an  era  of  peace,  during  which  the  temporal  welfare  of  the 
nation  progressed  very  rapidly,  but  his  immoral  private  life  set  an 
ill  example  to  society  at  large  ;  and  the  silencing  of  Convocation 
shewed  that  Church  life  was  not  likely  to  be  advanced  by  those 
whom  he  placed  at  the  head  of  civil  affairs.  ThefGeorgian  era  has 
been  termed  the  siesta  of  the  English  Church,  but  that  is  a  very 
mild  way  of  putting  it.  It  was  a  period  of  indifference  and' apathy, 


STOKE-POGES  CHURCH,   BUCKINGHAMSHIRE. 

say  what  men  will  to  the  contrary  ;  although  no  doubt  the  spiritual 
darkness  of  the  time  was  often  relieved  by  brilliant  gleams  of  light 
;phich  have  not  yet  ceased  to  shine.  The  life  of  the  town  was 
very  unsatisfactory  ;  but  in  the  seclusion  of  country  villages  there 
lived  many  an  earnest  parish  priest  who  endeavoured  by  speech  and 
pen  and  pious  example  to  stem  the  torrent  of  vice  and  irreligion. 
There  were  many  non-juring  clergy  also  who,  though  unable  actively 
to  do  their  part,  were  unfailing  in  their  attendance  day  by  day  at 
the  services  in  their  parish  churches,  whose  saintly  life  amid  dis- 
tracting surroundings  did  more  good  than  sermons.  Foremost 
among  them  we  must  reckon  William  Law,  who,  though  in  latter 
life  a  disciple  of  German  mysticism,  has  wrought  a  strong  influence 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY.  215 

upon  the  religious  thought  of  succeeding  generations,  chiefly  by 
means  of  his  %  Serious  Call  to  a  devout  and  holy  life,'  which  was 
published  in  1726. l  He  also  remorselessly  exposed  the  audacities  of 
Bishop  Hoadley,  and  with  such  remarkable  incisiveness  that  Hoadley 
made  no  attempt  to  answer  'his  repeated  challenges.  No  more 
remarkable  illustration  of  the  unassuming  influence  diffused  by  the 
Church,  in  quiet  country  districts,  can  be  found  than  the  circum- 
stances which  inspired  the  po^t  Gray,  when  staying  at  Stoke- Poges, 
to  write  his  famous  Elegy  ;  which  still  retains  its  power  to  revive 
pleasant  and  pensive  associations.  It  appeals  to  the  capacity  of 
childhood  no  less  than  to  the  universal  instinct  of  humanity  ;  and 
imparts  a  permanent  charm  to  the  most  commonplace  sentiments. 
We  should  hardly  think  as  he  did  were  we  to  visit  this  spot  without 
knowing  what  he  wrote  ;  but  we  are  surprised,  after  reading  and 
seeing,  that  the  thoughts  did  not  arise  in  our  ow  n  minds.  There  is 
one  verse  specially  suited  to  our  present  purpose. 

'•  Hark  !  how  the  sacred  calm  that  breathes  around, 
Bids  every  fierce  tumultuous  passion  cease  ; 
In  si  ill  small  accent!  whispering  from  the  ground 
A  grateful  earnest  of  eternal  peace." 

This  was  published  in  the  middle  of  the  18th  century,  and  it  may 
serve  to  indicate,  in  better  words  than  we  can  frame,  the  underlying 
influences  for  good,  unconsciously  diffused  by  the  Church  in  the 
period  of  its  greatest  apathy.  Oliver  Goldsmith  also,  some  twenty 
years  later,  in  his  poem  of  the  Deserted  Village  (after  a  careful 
study  of  the  country  during  several  years  for  the  express  purpose), 
forcibly  sums  up  the  unassuming  yet  invaluable  lives  of  the  country 
parsons  that  he  met. 

"  Thus  to  relieve  the  wretched  was  his  pride, 
And  e'en  his  failings  leaned  to  virtue's  side  ; 
But  in  hi*  duty  prompt  at  every  call, 
He  watched  and  wept,  he  prayed  and  felt  for  all ; 
And,  as  a  bird  each  fond  endearment  tries, 
To  tempt  its  new-fledged  offspring  to  the  skies, 
He  tried  each  art,  reproved  each  dull  delay, 
Allured  to  brighter  worlds,  and  led  the  way." 

In  the  busier  lifs  of  court  and  society  George  Berkeley  occupies  a 
foremost  place  among  the  clergy.  He  was  an  Irishman,  and  owed 
his  reception  in  the  world  of  letters  to  Dean  Swift.  He  was  also  a 
philosopher,  and  possessed  of  great  conversational  powers.  He 
obtained  the  deanery  of  Derry  in  1724,  and  the  bishopric  of  Cloyne 
in  1733.  He  conceived  an  idea  of  evangelising  the  American 
Indians  by  establishing  a  mi«sionarv  college  on  the  Island  of 
Bermuda  ;  an  I  so  persuaded  the  members  of  the  legislature  of  its 

1  Recently  reprinted  by  Griffith  &  Farrau.     Price  Is. 


216 


ILLUSTRATED   NOTES   ON 


necessity,  that  the  House  of  Commons  voted  him  £, 20, 000  for  the 
purpose.  On  the  faith  of  this  he  embarked  with  his  wife  for 
America,  and  lived  temporarily  at  Rhode  Island  ;  where  he  matured 
his  plans,  and  waited  for  the  money,  which  never  came.  He  had, 
therefore,  to  return,  grievously  disappointed  at  the  failure  of  his 
plan.  Although  his  fanciful  schemes  were  thwarted  at  the  time 
by  Sir  Robert  Walpole,  then  Prime  Minister,  who  seems  to  have 
been  determined  to  extinguish  every  kind  of  religious  activity  ; 
posterity  has  endorsed  Berkeley's  forecast  of  America's  future, 
greatness  : — 

"  Westward  the  course  of  empire  takes  its  way  : 

The  first  four  acts  already  past, 

A  fifth  shall  close  the  drama  of  the  day  : 

Time's  noblest  offspring  is  its  last." 

3.     Growth  of  Infidelity.— In  the  year  1707  the  Socinians  who 
denied  the  divinity  of  our  Lord  and  the  doctrine  of  the  Holy  Trinity 

were  sufficiently  numerous  to  form 
themselves  into  the  distinct  reli- 
gious community  henceforth  known 
as  Unitarians.  They  were  chiefly 
drawn  from  the  English  Presby- 
^terians,  and  were  closely  allied 
with  the  English  Deists  ;  whose 
chief  exponent  was  Dr.  Samuel 
Clark,  a  Church  of  England  clergy- 
man who  had  adopted  Latitudi- 
narian  views,  and  who,  though  he 
had  retracted  some  of  his  earlier 
writings  while  Convocation  was 
allowed  to  deliberate,  plunged  into 
heretical  tenets,  after  its  suspension 
preserved  him  from  fear  of  cen- 
sure. At  this  time  sceptical  works 
were  issued  from  the  press  in  great 
numbers,  bearing  the  names  of 
Hume,  Bolingbroke,Tindal, Collins, 
Woolston,  and  a  host  besides  ; 
who  followed  in  the  steps  ot  Lord  Herbert  of  Cherbury,  Hobbes, 
Toland,  and  Shaftesbury.  They  were  replied  to  by  Warburton, 
Waterland,  Sherlock,  Berkeley,  Home,  Leland,  and  many  more, 
who  had  taken  up  the  work  of  Christian  Evidences  in  succession  to 
bishop  Bull,  John  Locke,  Ralph  Cudworth,  Richard  Cumberland, 
etc.  But  the  most  doughty  champion  of  orthodoxy  was  Joseph 
Butler,  who  became  bishop  of  Bristol  in  1738,  and  afterwards 
Bishop  of  Durham  ;  which  latter  see  he  declined  to  vacate  when 
offered  the  archbishopric  of  Canterbury.  Two  years  before  his 


BISHOP   BUTLER. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  217 

rlevation  to  the  episcopate  he  rad  published  his  great  work,  '  the 
Analogy  cf  Kelipwn,  natural  and  revealed,  to  the  constitution  and 
cotirse  of  nature ' ;  which  has  ever  since  held  a  foremost  place  in  the 
intellectual  armoury  from  whence  theologians  select  their  weapons 
against  the  champions  of  unbelief.  He  thus  states  the  circumstances 
which  led  him  to  compose  the  book  :  •'  It  is  come.  I  know  not  how, 
to  be  taken  for  granted  by  many  persons  that  Christianity  is  not  so 
much  as  a  subject  of  inquiry,  but  that  it  is  now  at  length  discovered 
to  be  fictitious.  And  accordingly  they  treat  it  as  if,  in  the  present 
age,  this  were  an  agreed  point  among  all  people  of  discernment,  and 
nothing  remained  but  to  set  it  up  as  a  principle  subject  of  mirth 
and  ridicule,  as  it  were  by  way  of  reprisals  for  its  having  so  long  inter- 
rupted the  pleas- ures  of  the  world.''  That  this  was  not  an  exaggerated 
picture  of  the  times  we  learn  from  an  official  charge  of  Archbishop 
Potter.  A.D.  1738.  which  states  : — "  An  open  and  professed  disregard 
to  religion  is  become  through  a  variety  of  unhappy  causes  a  dis- 
tinguishing character  of  the  present  age.  This  evil  is  grown  to  a 
great  height  in  the  metropolis  of  the  nation  ;  is  daily  spread 
through  every  part  of  it ;  and  bad  in  itself  as  this  can  be,  must  of 
necessity  bring  all  others  after  it.  Indeed  it  hath  already  brought  in 
such  dissoluteness  and  contempt  of  principle  in  the  highest  part  of 
the  world,  and  such  profligate  intemperance  and  fearlessness  of 
committing  crimes  in  the  lower,  as  must,  if  this  torrent  of  impiety 
stop  not,  become  absolutely  fatal.  And  God  knows,  far  from  stopping, 
it  receives  from  the  ill  design  of  some  persons  and  the  inconsiderateness 
of  others  a  continual  increase.  Christianity  is  now  ridiculed  and 
railed  at  with  very  little  reserve,  and  the  teachers  of  it  without  any 
at  all."  Many  who  wrote  in  favour  of  Christ's  teaching  adopted  an 
apologetic  tone,  and  even  Bishop  Butler  is  said  to  have  expressed  a 
conviction  that  the  pillars  of  the  Church  were  tottering.  The  follow- 
ing lines,  adapted  from  a  modern  poet,  fairly  describe  the  situation  : 

• '  With  the  soft  airs  of  summer  there  had  come 
A  torpor  on  her  frame.     A  drowsy  sloth 
Fettered  her  limbs  like  palsy,  and  her  mien 
With  all  its  loftiness,  seem  struck  with  eld. 
Even  her  voice  was  changed  ;  a  languid  moan 
Taking  the  place  of  the  clear  silver  key  ; 
And  brain  and  sense  grew  faint ;  as  if  the  light 
And  very  air  were  steeped  in  sluggishness." — ^V.  P.  Willis  ) 

Deist ic  and  Trinitarian  controversies  raged  all  through  the  ISth 
century,  not  only  in  England  but  in  France  as  well  ;  where  they 
n-stiltod  in  the  fearful  reign  of  terror  known  in  history  as  the 
French  Revolution  (A.D.  1789).  A  little  before  (1776)  the  faith  of 
many  intellectual  people  had  been  shaken  by  the  publication  of 
Gibbon's  '  Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire,'  in  which  he 
accounted  for  the  wonderful  spread  of  Christianity  in  the  primi- 


218 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


tive  ages  on  purely  human  grounds,  without  any  recognition  of 
Divine  direction  and  support.  Not  long  after  (1790-4)  the 
lower  ranks  of  life  were  vitiated  by  the  writings  of  Tom  Paine  ; 
who  had  wandered  over  the  wdrld  in  search  of  a  city  to  dwell  in,  and 
with  difficulty  escaped  the  guillotine  at  the  hands  of  Eobespierre. 
His  books  were  full  of  rank  blasphemy,  and  avowedly  intended  to 
cause  discontent  among  the  illiterate  and  poor.  These  pernicious 
writings  drew  forth  valuable  rejoinders  from  Dr.  Richard  Watson, 
bishop  of  Llandaff,  which  were  written  in  plain  and  simple  terms 
suited  to  the  comprehension  of  unlearned  folk  ;  while  for  the  better 
educated  Archdeacon  Paley  wrote  his  famous  '  Evidences  of  Chris- 
tianity.' It  will  thus  be  seen  that  God  never  left  Himself  without 
witnesses,  whether  men  would  hear,  or  whether  they  would 
forbear.  While,  on  the  subject  of  literature  it  must  be  stated  that 
matters  were  not  mended  by  the  stage  plays  and  works  of  fiction  that 
the  Georgian  era  produced.  If  men  like 
Samuel  Richardson,  the  father  of 
novelists,  wrote  '  namby-pamby  '  tales 
they  were  not  improved  upon  by  the 
coarseness  of  Fielding,  Smollet,  and 
Sterne ;  who  cannot  be  excused  from 
censure  011  the  ground  that  they  did 
but  speak  of  things  as  they  found  them. 
If  their  books  '  held  the  mirror  up  to 
nature '  the  social  conditions  of  the 
time  were  not  much  to  be  proud  of. 
Happily  England  was  spared  from  the 
-.—.-.....  ,  ^  destructive  liter- 
ature with  which 
France  was  flooded 
at  the  same  period 
by  Francois  Marie 
Arouet  (Voltaire) 
and  Jean  Jacqut'S 
Rmisxeau,  of  whom 
Dr.  Johnson  once 
said,  '  It  is  difficult 
to  settle  the  pro- 
portion of  iniquity 
between  them.'  In 
the  midst  of  all 
this  infidelity  and 
immorality  the 
simple  faith  of 

OLNKT  CHURCH,  BUCKINGHAMSHIRE.  many  Christian 
people  was  preserved  by  scraps  of  sacred  poetry,  which  appeared  from 
time  to  time  as  lights  in  a  dark  place.  We  have  not  space  to  men- 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY.  219 

tion  more  than  one  poet  of  the  18th  century,  whose  name  could  not 
very  well  have  been  left  out.  viz.  William  Cmcjier  ;  the  friend  of  a  very 
energetic  and  devoted  parish  priest.  John  Newton,  who  once  had  charge 
of  the  parish  of  Olney,  in  Buckinghamshire.  It  was  at  Mr.  Newton's 
suggestion,  and  no  doubt  under  the  inspiration  of  his  teaching,  that 
Cowper  wrote  the  Olney  Hymns,  many  of  which  are  incorporated  in 
the  hymnals  of  the  present  day,  such  as  : — 

'  O  for  a  closer  walk  with  Gcd.' 

'  There  is  a  fountain  filled  with  blood.' 

'  Hark,  my  soui!  it  is  the  Lord.' 

which  show  unmistakably  that,  even  if  the  active  and  enterprising 
spirit  of  the  Church  lay  dormant  for  a  time,  there  was  still  real 
life  in  her.  She  was  but  slumbering  after  a  wearying  period  of 
labour,  sorrow,  and  strife.  She  would  wake  again  to  renewed  energy 

4.  The  Wesleys. — Among  the  best  known  of  the  country  clergy, 
in  the  early  part  of  the  18th  century,  was  Samuel  Wesley,  rector  of 
Epworth,  in  Lincolnshire  ;  whose  name,  however,  would  scarcely 
have  been  handed  down  to  posterity  had  not  two  of  his  children 
become  famous.  Both  he  and  his  wife  Susanna  were  the  offspring 
of  puritan  ministers,  who  had  been  ejected  after  the  restoration,  yet 
both  discarded  the  principles  of  their  parents  and  adopted  those 
which  were  known  as '  High  Church.'  Three  of  their  sons,  Samuel, 
John,  and  Charles,  bacame  clergymen,  having  been  educate'!  for  that 
end  in  the  University  of  Oxford.  Samuel  Wesley,  junior,  died  in 
1739,  and  did  not  make  much  of  a  mark  in  the  world.  John  Wesley, 
was  ordained  deacon  in  1725,  and  in  the  next  year  became  fellow  of 
Lincoln  College,  Oxford.  A  careful  study  of  Jeremy  Taylor's  '  Holy 
Living,'  and  Law's  '  Serious  Call,'  impressed  him  with  the  necessity 
of  leading  a  deeply  religious  life  ;  and  in  1728  he  oceanic  curate  to 
his  father  at  Epworth.  In  the  meantime  the  younger  son.  Charles 
ir<w?ey,-was  graduating  at  the  University.  Their  father  had  been  a 
great  defender  of  the  devotional  societies  mentioned  on  page  197,  and 
had  established  a  flourishing  one  in  his  parish  ;  so  that  the  young 
Wesleys  had  been  trained  from  infancy  in  a  system  of  which  they 
have  been  erroneously  considered  the  originators.  When  John 
Wesley  returned  to  Oxford  to  take  up  his  position  as  a  college  tutor, 
he  found  that  his  brother  Charles,  then  a  student  of  Christchurch, 
had  inaugurated  such  a  society  among  a  few  undergraduates :  who 
met  every  night  for  mutual  improvement  and  devotion,  and  spent 
their  spare  time  during  the  day  in  giving  religious  instruction  in  the 
charity  schools,  the  jails,  and  workhouses  ;  and  generally,  by  their 

I  See  the  Churchman's  Lije  of  Wesley,  S.P.C.K.,  Home  Library,  3s.  6 1.  ;  and 
Canon  Overton's  Evangelical  Revival  in  the  18//4  Century.  Longmans,  2s.  6d. 


220 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


life  and  conversation,  endeavoured  to  influence  for  good  the  other 
students  of  the  university,  who  had  unhappily  caught  the  material- 
istic spirit  of  that  age.  The  leadership  of  the  guild  or,  '  Holy  Club  ' 
as  it  was  contemptuously  called,  was  naturally  offered  to  John,  who 
accepted  it  gladly.  For  their  pains  in  trying  to  set  a  good  example 
to  those  around  them,  they  were  subject  to  much  ridicule  by  those 
who  preferred  profanity  ;  and  one  of  the  nicknames  by  which  the 
new  society  was  known,  the  term  '  Methodist, 'stuck  to  the  members 
al!  through  life,  until  it  became  an  honoured  and  well  understood 
name,  even  among  themselves.  It  seems  strange  now  to  read  that 
their  '  Method '  consisted  in  a  most  strict  observance  of  all  that  the 
Prayer-book  demands  from  conscientious  sons  of  the  Church  of 


EPWORTH   CHURCH,   LINCOLNSHIRE. 

England,  but  there  can  be  no  doubtj'of  it.  They  fasted  on  all  the 
appointed  days,  and  communicated  every  Sunday  or  Holy  Day. 
They  also  denied  themselves  of  every  luxury  and  amusement  in  order 
to  save  money  for  beneficent  deeds.  la  1735,  soon  after  the  death 
of  their  father,  John  and  Charles  accompanied  General  Oglcthorpe 
and  his  party  of  Moravian  emigrants  to  Georgia,  Charles  as  the 
General's  secretary,  and  John  as  a  missioner  under  the  direction  of 
the  Society  for  Propagating  the  Gospel.  They  did  not  have  much 
success  there,  because  they  at  once  sought  to  impose  Church  discipline 
in  all  its  fulness  upon  the  Colony  ;  instead  of  regarding  their  flock  as 


ENGLISH    CHURCH  HISTORY.  221 

composed  of  persons  whose  training  in  the  rudiments  of  Christianity 
had  been  utterly  neglected,  and  who  therefore  needed  to  be  nurtured 
gently  with  the  milk  of  the  Word. 

The  brothers  Wesley  returned  in  great  disappointment  after  two 
years  of  fruitless  labour,  and  joined  the  Moravian  Society  in  Fetter 
Lane,  London,  which  Peter  Sohler  had  founded.  From  Bohler  they 
learned  the  doctrine  of  '  conversion,'  i.e.,  that  each  believer  ought  to 
be  able  to  point  to  some  definite  time,  place,  and  circumstance  when, 
where,  and  by  which  the  assurance  of  individual  pardon  and  sal- 
vation came  to  his  soul.  John  Wesley  recorded  with  precision  the 
circumstances  of  his  own  '  conversion  '  as  having  taken  place  May  24, 
IToS.  accompanied  by  feelings  of  ravishment,  followed  by  an  infinite 
calm.  For  a  long  time  this  ecstatic  feeling  was  thought  by  the 
Wesleys  to  be  a  necessary  condition  and  sign  of  individual  acceptance 
with  God  ;  and  is  still  so  considered  by  certain  Methodist  societies, 
although  the  brothers  soon  found  cause  to  renounce  the  idea.  The 
Wesleys  soon  separated  from  the  Moravians  ;  and  John  began  to  be 
strongly  impressed  with  the  idea  that  he  ought  to  go  throughout  the 
length  and  breadth  of  England,  and  reclaim  the  people  from  the 
spiritual  apathy  that  was  settling  like  a  blight  upon  the  nation.  Up 
to  1739  the  pulpits  of  the  churches  were  freely  open  to  him,  but 
after  that  date  the  clergy  developed  a  strong  opposition  to  Methodism, 
owing  to  the  remarkable  powers  of  eloquence  possessed  by  a  young 
man  to  whom  we  must  now  refer. 

5.  George  Whitefield. — Among  the  members  of  the  Wesley 
Club  at  Oxford  was  a  poor  young  man,  son  of  a  widow  who  kept  an 
inn  at  Gloucester.  George  Whitefield  by  name  ;  who  was  a  servitor 
student  at  Pembroke  College,  Oxford.  His  genuine  piety  led  the  Bishop 
of  Gloucester  to  ordain  him  before  the  canonical  age  ;  and  when  the 
Wesleys  returned  from  Georgia  he  went  thither  to  try  his  hand,  but 
soon  came  back  for  money  to  carry  on  the  mission.  As  Whitefield's 
preaching  was  known  to  be  attended  by  very  great  excitement  a 
prejudice  arose  against  him,  and  he  took  to  preaching  in  the  open 
air  with  remarkable  results.  He  began  at  Bristol,  which  at  that  time 
was  a  centre  of  vice  in  all  its  worst  forms,  and  was  the  first  to 
provide  spiritual  privileges  for  the  colliers  who  lived  like  heathens 
near  that  city.  Preaching  in  the  open  air  was  such  an  unheard  of 
thing  that  20,000  of  these  poor  creatures  crowded  to  hear  him,  and 
the  white  gutters  caused  by  the  tears  which  ran  down  their  black 
cheeks  shewed  how  visibly  they  were  affected  ;  strong  men  being 
moved  to  hysterical  convulsions  by  his  wondrous  power.  John 
Wesley  joined  him  there,  and  was  not  a  little  perplexed  at  these 
'  bodily  symptoms  ' ;  but  at  length  he  sought  to  encourage  them  as 
evident  '  signs  of  grace,'  notwithstanding  that  Whitefield  considered 
them  to  be  '  doubtful  indications.'  It  is  difficult  to  say  wherein  the 
effect  of  Whitefield's  preaching  lay  ;  certainly  not  in  his  language  or 


222  ILLUSTRATED  hOTES  0A' 

logic,  for  his  printed  sermons  and  writings  contain  nothing  remark- 
able  ;  it  must  have  been  by  earnestness  and  charm  of  voice,  for 
presently  he  attracted  to  him  the  rich  as  well  as  the  poor,  and  thus 
he  was  able  to  gain  funds  for  his  foreign  expeditions.  No  less  than 
seven  times  did  he  visit  Georgia,  no  mean  voyage  in  those  days,  and 
the  traditions  of  every  part  of  England  bespeak  his  incessant  labours 
as  an  itinerant  preacher.  It  is  said  that  he  sometimes  competed 
with  the  showmen  at  the  fairs  for  the  attention  of  the  multitude, 
and  that  after  one  such  occasion  he  received  a  thousand  letters  from 
different  people  in  testimony  of  their  '  conversion.'  Of  his  power  to 
move  intellectual  minds  the  great  Benjamin  Franklin  gives  indepen- 
dent testimony  ;  having  once  heard  Whitefield  preach  a  Charity 
sermon.  '  As  he  proceeded  I  began  to  soften,  and  concluded  to  give 
some  copper  ;  another  stroke  of  his  oratory  made  me  ashamed  of  that, 
and  determined  me  to  give  the  silver  ;  and  he  finished  so  admirably 
that  I  emptied  my  pocket  wholly  in  the  collector's  dish,  gold  and  all." 
Whitefield  had  a  commanding  presence  and  fervid  dramatic  action  ; 
but  he  was  only  a  preacher,  and  not  always  judicious.  Also  he  soon 
diverged  from  Church  doctrine  and  adopted  the  theories  of  the 
Calvinists,  so  that  the  Wesleys  ceased  to  co-operate  with  him.  Some 
of  the  revivalists  who  followed  Whitefield  eventually  founded 
the  community  known  as  the  '  Calvinistic  Methodists,'  but  he 
always  repudiated  the  idea  of  founding  a  sect.  Although  most 
fashionable  people  considered  the  emotionalism  of  the  Methodists  as 
a  mark  of  vulg  rity,  there  were  others  who  thought  differently  ;  the 
most  notable  of  these  being  Selina,  Countess  of  Huntingdon,  over 
whom  Whitefield  exercised  great  influence.  She  not  only  gathered 
round  her  men  of  rank  and  intelligence  ;  but  applied  her  own  wealth, 
and  funds  that  she  raised,  to  train  and  support  clergy  who  were  to  be 
considered  as  her  chaplains.  This  coterie  followed  in  the  steps  of 
Wesley  and  Whitefield  by  setting  the  parochial  organization  at 
naught,  and  there  was  much  danger  lest  Church  discipline  and 
Church  order  might  be  placed  at  the  mercy  of  a  woman's  arbitrary 
will.  But  a  London  clergyman  obtained  a  legal  decision  against  two 
of  Lady  Huntingdon's  clergy,  who  preached  in  an  unconsecrated 
building  in  his  parish  without  authority,  and  then  her  ladyship  had 
to  '  register '  her  meeting  houses  as  dissenting  places  of  worship ;  her 
followers  being  known  as  Lady  Huntingdon's  Connexion.  She  estab- 
lished a  training  college  for  her  ministers  at  Trevecca,  in  South  Wales, 
which  was  afterwards  removed  to  Cheshunt  in  Hertfordshire,  and  is 
now  one  of  the  richest  of  the  Dissenting  colleges.  When  the  methods 
of  her  chaplains  were  proved  to  be  an  evasion  of  the  law,  many  clergy 
walked  no  more  with  her  ;  but  the  Calvinistic  principles  enunciated 
by  Whitefield  continued  to  spread  among  Churchmen,  and  their 
awakened  zeal  gave  rise  to  what  is  known  as  the  Evangelical  Party 
within  the  Church.  George  Whitefield  worked  too  hard  to  live  long. 
He  died  in  1769,  aged  fifty-six. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  223 

6.  Methodism. — Lives  of  John  Wesley  are  so  numerous  and 
cheap  that  it  is  unnecessary  to  give  a  detailed  description  of  his 
ministerial  career  in  these  pages,  even  were  there  room.  He  was 
undoubtedly  great  as  a  preacher,  but  it  was  in  organization  that  he 
most  excelled  ;  and  in  this  he  has  never  been  surpassed.  His  first 
deviation  from  the  stereotyped  customs  of  the  Church  was  the  appoint- 
ment of  lay  preacherg,  whom  he  sent  into  every  part  of  England  and 
Wales  toiwork  in  appointed  'circuits.'  He  did  not  wish  their  preach- 
ing to  enter  into  competition  with  the  ordinary  Church  services,  but 
to  supplement  them.  This  began  in  1741.  Three  years  previously 
Wesley  had  opened  preaching  houses  at  Bristol  and  London,  which 
we  should  now  call  '  Mission  Halls  '  ;  and  they  were  rapidly  multi- 
plied in  all  directions.  There  would  have  been  nothing  ecclesiastic- 
ally unlawful  in  these  measures  had  they  received  episcopal  sanction  ; 
but  Wesley  was  at  all  times  impatient  of  direction,  and  could  not 
see  for  many  years,  what  others  plainly  perceived  and  pointed  out  to 
him.  that  they  might  at  any  time  develop  into  a  rival  ministry  and 
rival  churches.  By  1744  the  Wesleyan  plan  was  thoroughly 
organized  into  a  system,  and  Charles  Wesley  hoped  that  it  might 
receive  official  sanction  as  a  powerful  auxiliary  of  the  Church.  It 
ought  to  have  been,  and  most  certainly  would  be  now  ;  but  this 
result  was  prevented  by  many  errors  of  judgment  on  the  part  of 
John,  and  by  the  ambition  of  the  lay  preachers  whom  he  had  com- 
missioned. The  zeal  of  the  latter  made  them  welcome  among  the 
people,  much  to  the  chagrin  of  many  careless  and  indifferent 
shepherds  in  neglected  parts  of  the  fold  ;  but  they  soon  began  to  con- 
sider appointment  by  Wesley  as  equal  to  ordination  by  a  bishop. 
England  was  then  reminded  of  the  '  preaching  friars  '  of  mediaeval 
times,  and  of  the  poor  preachers  of  Wycliffe,  who  went  about  the 
country  without  license  from  the  ordinary,  and  set  the  parochial 
system  at  defiance.  A  cry  of  '  Jesuits  in  disguise '  arose  against  the 
new  'evangelists,'  which  greatly  increased  in  1745,  owing  to  the 
political  excitement  of  the  Jacobite  rebellion,  with  which  it  was 
said  the  '  Methodists'  were  in  sympathy  ;  and  this  not  nnfrequently 
resulted  in  stupid  brute  violence  against  the  Wesleyan  preachers. 
Although  the  bishops  refused  their  sanction  they  did  not  hinder  the 
cause,  or  inhibit  the  clergy  who  joined  the  Wesleys  from  preaching, 
as  they  had  the  power  to  do  ;  but  the  movement  was  received  with 
much  hostility  by  many  of  the  clergy  whose  parishes  were  invaded  ; 
some  of  whom  unwisely  refused  to  administer  Holy  Communion  to 
the  members  of  Wesleyan  societies,  when  they  came  to  church  for 
that  purpose  in  accordance  with  the  rules  of  '  Methodism '  which 
John  and  Charles  Wesley  had  laid  down.  In  such  cases  Wesley 
allowed  the  clergy  who  belonged  to  the  societies  to  administer  the 
Sacraments  in  the  preaching  houses,  after  which  he  allowed  the 
lay-evangelists  to  use  the  Prayer-book.  In  1749  Charles  retired  from 
the  government  of  the  societies,  in  which  he  had  hitherto  borna  a 


224 


ILLUSTRATED   NOTES  ON 


share,  lest  he  should  be  held  responsible  for  the  schism  that  would 
inevitably  follow  if  the  lay-evangelists  assumed  priestly  functions  as 
they  were  inclined  to  do.  Charles  was  the  poet  of  the  movement, 
and  his  hymns  helped  it  on  quite  as  much  as  the  sermons  and 
administration  of  his  brother  John  had  done.  There  is  much  power 
for  good  in  sacred  songs,  and  many  of  those  written  by  Charles 
Wesley  are  sung  by  thousands  who  would  not  for  a  moment  be 
classed  with  Methodists. 

Jesu,  lover  of  my  soul  ! 

Soldiers  of  Christ  arise  ! 


Lo  !  he  comes  with  clouds  descending. 
O  !  for  a  heart  to  praise  my  God. 

are  some  of  those  we  owe  to  him,  and  many  others  have  been  altered 
and  adapted,  cuch  as 

Hark  !  the  herald  angels  sing. 
Hail  the  day  that  sees  him  rise. 

or  Christmas  and  Easter.  Charles  Wesley  died  in  178S,  and  was 
buried  in  Marylebone  Churchyard  according  to  directions  expressed 
by  him  just  before  his  death,  "I  have  lived  and  I  die  in  the  Com- 
munion of  the  Church  of  England,  and  I  will  be  buried  in  the  yard 
of  my  parish  Church."  John  Wesley  was  of  like  mind,  but  after  he 
lost  his  brother's  co-operation  he  drifted  nearer  and  nearer  to  the 

rock  of  division.  One  of  his 
numerous  biographers  tells  us 
that  "  He  lived  and  died  a  hearty 
but  inconsistent  churchman," 
which  may  be  considered  an 
epigram.  Several  times  during 
his  long  life  John  Wesley  had 
to  combat  the  desire  of  his  fol- 
lowers for  independent  exist- 
ence, expressed  by  them  in  their 
annual  conferences,  but  his 
vigorous  administration  staved 
off  the  evil  day  of  scliism.  As 
John  Wesley  drew  near  his  end 
it  became  necessary  to  incor- 
porate the  societies  by  deed  in 
chancery,  in  order  to  provide 
for  the  government  of  the 
'  Connexion  '  after  his  death. 
This  was  done  in  1784,  and 
thenceforward  the  Methodist 
THE  REV.  JOHN  WESLEY.  societies  have  been  administered 


ENGLISH  CHURCH   HISTORY.  225 

by  a  corporation  of  100  trustees,  who  f  •  rm  the  '  Wcsleyan  Conference.' 
and  meet  annually.  Methodism  soon  extended  throughout  what  is 
now  the  United  Kingdom,  and  made  rapid  strides  in  America.  Its 
central  home  was  at  the  City  Road  Chapel,  London.  E.G.  :  near 
which  John  Wesley  lived,  died  and  lies  buried.  In  1790,  jnst  before 
his  death,  he  published  these  words.  "  I  hold  all  the  doctrines  of  the 
Church  of  England.  I  love  her  liturgy,  and  approve  her  plan  of 
discipline,  and  only  wish  it  could  be  carried  out  "  :  and  to  the  last  he 
deprecated  any  separation  from  the  National  Church.  For  a  while 
after  his  death  his  wishes  were  respected,  and  so  late  as  1793  the 
'Conference'  declared.  "We  are  determined  in  a  body  to  remain  in 
connexion  with  the  Church  of  England  "  ;  and  there  has  never  been 
any  formal  or  official  declaration  of  schism  ;  but  the  '  Conference '  of 
17;i.5  practically  separated  Methodism  from  the  Church  of  England, 
by  claiming  the  power  to  confer  priestly  functions  independently  of 
the  Catholic  and  Apostolic  Episcopate.  It  resolved  that  in 
where  the  members  of  a  society  formally  desired  that  the  '  lay 
preacher '  should  administer  sacraments  it  might  be  allowed.  John 

•;-y  is  not  free  from  the  suspicion  of  having  permitted  this 
grave  ir  egularity  before  his  death.  The  ;  lay  preachers'  were 
appointed  by  the  Conference  up  to  the  year  1836  ;  when  the  then 
president,  ex-president,  and  secretary  commenced  the  practice  of 
ordaining  to  the  ministry  by  '  laying  on  of  hands.'  although  it  is 
certain  that  the  power  of  ordination  had  never  been  conferred  on 
them.  For  this  also  they  could  claim  the  precedent  created  by  John 
Wesley,  who  'consecrated'  Dr.  Coke  to  be  Superintendent  of  the 
Wesleyan  Societies  in  America,  from  which  anti-episcopal  act  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United  States  obtained  their 
succession  of  ^bishop?.'  This  explains  the  chief  obstacle  to  nnity 
between  the  various  Methodist  Societies  ami  our  Church.  They 
seem  to  think  it  would  l.-e  a  reflection  on  the  pist  and  present  status 
of  their  '  Ministry '  if  their  preachers  were  to  accept  ordination  at 
the  hands  of  English  bishops.  We  are  not  without  hope  that  the 

on  may  yet  be  healed.  •  If  the  disposition  for  unity  shall  exist, 
the  other  obstacles  will  appear  small,  and  readily  to  be  moved  away. 
The  submission  to  the  Anglican  form  of  ordination  will  the; 
difficulty  block  the  path  no  longer.  When  He,  who  needed  no 
baptism  from  the  hand  of  any  man.  desired  to  comply  with  an 
ancient  rale,  sayincr.  •'  Suffer  it  to  be  so  now,  for  thus  it  becometh 
us  to  fulfil  all  righteousness.''  He  spoke  along  the  centuries  to  all  who 
deem  but  lightly  of  formt*  and  ceremonies,  and  to  all  who  are 
ruled  bv  that  fteling  which  by  s; 'me  is  called  pride,  and  bv  others- 
self  -resp'ect '  (See  Urfin's  Lift  <\f  Wt-fl-ij.  S.P.C.E..  4  -)• 

7.  The  'Evangelical  Revival.'—  George  III.  prided  himself  on 
being  an  Englishman  born  and  bred,  and  as  he  resolved  to  avoid  the 
immorality  and  scej  tk'i.-m  thr.t  disgraced  his  r>: 


226  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

some  hope  for  religion  under  his  rule  ;  although  it  was  long  before 
the  tide  of  infidelity  was  arrested.  The  rough  awakening  from 
lethargy  that  Methodism  had  brought  to  the  Church  of  England  was 
rot  without  its  good  results,  notwithstanding  that  for  a  long  time 
her  clergy  seemed  undecided  as  to  the  best  course  to  adopt.  The 
firm  administration  of  the  diocese  of  London  by  Bishop  Porteus 
dissuaded  many  from  the  disregard  of  episcopal  authority  which 
was  the  bane  of  Methodism  ;  but  the  Wesleyan  idea  of  '  Conversion,' 
and  the  Huntingdonian  system  which  denied  man's  free-will,  had 
taken  a  great  hold  upon  many  earnest  minds  within  the  Church. 
The  more  direct  result  to  the  Church  of  the  '  Methodist  revival '  was 
the  undue  exaltation  of  preaching.  The  clergy  seem  to  have  endea- 
voured to  evangelise  the  land  afresh  ;  for  they  addressed  professing 
Christians  after  the  style  in  which  St.  Paul  might  have  addressed 
the  Athenians  who  had  never  heard  of  the  atonement.  In  spite  of 
its  incongruity  this  practice  had  a  wondrous  effect  upon  the  fashionable 
world  ;  in  which  most  men  and  women  had  so  entirely  neglected  atten- 
tion to  spiritual  concerns  that  they  seemed  to  be  quite  unconscious 
of  their  need  of  a  Saviour.  To  bring  home  to  such  people  a  strong 
conviction  of  their  exceeding  sinfulness,  and  a  sense  of  God's 
amazing  love  to  man  in  sacrificing  His  own  dear  Son,  was  indeed  a 
great  and  glorious  work. — And  this  was  dona  with  such  success  that 
before  the  close  of  the  18th  century  a  whole  army  of  sincere  and 
earnest  men  and  women  were  devoting  themselves  to  the  task  of 
reclaiming  all  ranks  of  life  from  the  depths  of  iniquity  into  which 
they  had  sunk.  Tn  the  numerous  biographies  and  memoirs  of  that  age 
"  We  read  of  faith  and  purest  charity 

In  statesman,  priest,  and  humble  citizen." 

Henry  Venn  the  elder,  James  Hervey,  William  Romaine,  Hannah 
More,  Charles  Simeon,  John  Thornton  the  banker,  Richard  Cecil,  and 
William  Wilbcrfovce  are  names  still  freshly  remembered  as  having 
been  in  the  van  of  the  revival ;  and  of  these  the  last  mentioned 
occupies  the  foremost  place,  not  only  by  reason  of  his  eminence  as 
a  politician  and  philanthropist,  but  also  on  account  of  his  earnest 
and  genuine  piety.  When  a  young  man  he  was  brought  under 
Whitefield's  influence,  to  the  dismay  of  his  grandfather,  who  angrily 
said,  '  If  Billy  turns  Methodist,  he  shall  not  have  sixpence  of  mine.' 
His  mother,  too,  feared  that  his  religious  scruples  might  make  him 
censorious.  Neither  suspicion  was  realised,  for.  after  consultation 
with  the  same  Mr.  Newton  who  suggested  the  Olney  Hymns  to 
Cowper,  he  became  the  model  of  a  Christian  statesman.  His  memory 
is  universally  beloved  for  his  efforts  in  suppressing  the  traffic  in 
human  flesh  which  disgraced  the  world  ;  for  it  was  mainly  through 
his  influence  that  Parliament  pas;ed  the  Acts  of  1787  and  1807,  the 
one  to  mitigate  the  sufferings  of  slaves  on  board  ship,  the  other  to 
abolish  the  iniquitous  traffic  altogether.  It  was  not  until  the  close 
Of  his  long  life  (1833),  after  he  had  retired  from  active  politics,  that 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY.  227 

his  complete  idea  of  the  emancipation  of  slaves  was  accomplished 
by  the  Parliamentary  grant  of  £20,000.000  in  compensation  to  the 
colonial  slave  owners.  But  "VVilberforce  was  equally  intent  upon 
uprooting  the  national  sins  of  sabbath  breaking,  duelling,  pugilism, 
profanity,  intemperance,  and  other  social  evi's.  His  Practical  view 
of  Christianity,  published  at  the  close  of  the  18th  century,  was 
intended  to  promote  consistency  of  character  among  Christians  ;  and 

it  was  through  him  that 
Henry  Martyn  became  the 
pioneer  missionary  of  the 
East  India  Company's 
trading  stations,  and  that 
a  bishop  and  three  arch- 
deacons were  sent  to  Cal- 
cutta in  1814.  His  advice 
was  sought  by  men  of  all 
parties  whenever  any  idea 
was  afloat  for  the  general 
welfare,  and  when  he 
died  the  whole  country 
mourned  the  loss  of  his 
boundless  sympathy  and 
genial  face.  Our  illustra- 
tion is  a  photogravure  of 
his  monument  in  "West- 
minster Abbey. 

There  was  one  great 
fault  in  the  'Evangelical 
P.evivai' : — it  undervalued 
the  ecclesiastical  system 
of  Creeds,  Sacraments, 
Public  Worship,  and  the 
yearly  round  of  fasts  and 
festivals.  The  prominence 
given  by  it  to  the  great 
doctrine  of  the  Atonement 
to  the  exclusion,  or  nearly  so,  of  other  essential  parts  of  the  Christian 
scheme  ;  and  the  excessive  merit  applied  to  preaching,  because  of  its 
immediate  effect  in  the  hands  of  worthy  men  at  the  time  of  religious 
lethargy  ;  are  now  generally  acknowledged  to  be  defects  which  pre- 
vented it  from  permanently  influencing  the  Church,  or  building  up 
Christians  after  they  had  been  '  converted.'  At  any  rate,  however  the 
fact  may  be  accounted  for,  a  fact  it  is  that  the  intense  vigour  and 
earnestness  which  marked  the  prime  movers  in  the  revival  did  not 
descend  to  their  successors  in  either  ministry  or  congregations,  and 
the  wretched]  dilapidations  of  the  churches  in  the  second  quarter  of 
the  1'Jth  century  shewed  plainly  that  something  was  wanting. 


228  ILLUSTRATED  A'OTES  ON 

8.  'Evangelical'  Societies  :  The  C.  M.S.— But  the  missionary 
spirit  which  moved  the  founders  of  the  Evangelical  movementto  stir  up 
their  brethren  at  home,  impelled  them  also  to  think  of  the  spiritual  con- 
dition of  the  heathen  lands  from  which  the  slaves  had  been  chiefly 
•drawn.  The  friendship  with  Dissenters,  that  was  courted  by  the  more 
•decidedly  Calvinistic  members  of  the  revival,  resulted  in  the  formation 
•of  '  unsectarian  '  societies,  in  which  nonconformists  and '  evangelical ' 
•Churchfolk  co-operated,  although  the  latter  were  the  largest  sub- 
scribers. Among  them  may  be  mentioned  the  London  Missionary 
Society,  founded  in  1795  by  'all  denominations,'  which  in  time 
became  exclusively  a  Dissenting  corporation  ;  the  Religious  Tract 
Society,  founded  in  1799,  the  committee  of  which  has  always  been 
composed  of  an  equal  number  of  Nonconformists  and  Churchmen  ; 
and  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society,  founded  in  1804,  which 
has  been  instrumental  in  translating  and  circulating  the  Scriptures, 
complete  and  in  portions,  in  a  very  great  number  of  foreign  lan- 
guages ;  besides  cheap  copies  in  our  own  tongue.  The  total  issues 
of  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society  since  its  formation  up  to 
1889  "were  120,136,781  copies  of  Holy  Scripture,  in  whole  or  in 
part  ;"  and  Churchmen  are  represented  on  its  committee  in  the  pro- 
portion of  15  to  36.  These  societies  may  yet  be  powerful  aids  to 
the  re-union  of  Christendom.  But  the  greatest  outcome  of  the 
Evangelical  revival  was  the  Church  Missionary  Society  ;  the  con- 
tinued and  increasing  popularity  of  which  demonstrates  the  noblest 
principle  of  that  movement.  It  was  »et  on  foot  April  12.  1799,  for 
the  purpose  of  sending  missionaries  amongst  the  heathen ;  because 
'  as  it  appeared  from  the  printed  reports  of  the  S.P.G.  and  S.P.C.K. 
that  those  societies  confined  their  labours  to  the  British  Plantations 
in  America  and  to  the  West  Indies,  there  seemed  to  be  still  wanting 
in  the  Established  Church  a  Society  for  sending  missions  to  the  con- 
tinent of  Africa  or  the  other  parts  of  the  heathen  world.'  The 
C. M.S.  was  at  first  called  '  The  Missionary  Society  for  Africa  and 
the  East,'  from  a  desire  to  avoid  friction,  even  in  name,  with  the 
missionary  work  of  the  older  societies  which  were  working  else- 
where. Its  operations  are  not  now  restricted  to  any  special  portion 
of  the  globe.  Its  first  president  was  the  Rev.  John  Venn.  The  word 
'  Church'  was  added  to  its  name  in  1812,  probably  to  distinguish  it 
from  the  other  'Evangelical'  societies  just  mentioned.  Since 
that  time  its  work  has  gone  on  steadily  increasing.  It  would  be 
impossible  to  express  here  a  tithe  of  the  work  undertaken  by  it ;  but 
some  idea  may  be  gathered  from  the  following  figures.1  Its  income 
for  the  year  1890-91  was  £247,737.  It  has  327  missionary  stations  ; 
in  Africa,  Asia,  India,  Ceylon,  the  Mauritius,  China,  Japan,  New 
Zealand,  North-west  Territories  and  the  Pacific.  It  supports  303 
European  ordained  Missionaries  ;  278  Native ;  57  European  lay 

J  Tafcen  from  Official  Year  Book  of  the  Church  of  England  lor  1892. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  229 

Missionaries  ;  76  Lady  Missionaries,  exclusive  of  missionaries'  wives  ; 
3.791  Native  Christian  Lay  Teachers  ;  151.673  Native  Christian 
Adherents  ;  50,005  Native  Communicants  ;  1,718  Schools  ;  and  70..'il  1 
Scholars.  In  connection  with  the  Church  Missionary  Society  there 
is  also  a  Zenana  Mission,  whereby  Eastern  women  are  reached. 

9.  Parliamentary  Grants.1 — It  is  sometimes  objected  against 
the  Church  of  England  that  during  the  Georgian  Era  she  received 
large  sums  of  money  from  Parliament  towards  the  building  and 
endowing  of  churches  ;  and  from  this  it  is  argned  that  Parliament 
has  the  right  to  take  away  the  monies  by  which  the  Church  is  now 
supported.  Oddly  enough  this  argument  comes  chiefly  from  the 
Dissenters,  who  have  .themselves  received  a  larger  sum  of  money 
from  Parliament  than  the  Church  has  done — e.g.,  the  Presbyterians 
aad  Dissenters  of  Ireland  received  £1.903,854  ;  while  the  Presby- 
terians and  Dissenters  of  England  and  Wales  obtained  about 
£216,660.  Add  £768.929  received  by  the  Irish  Nonconformists  in 
commutation  of  their  grants  in  1870,  and  a  total  of  £2,889,333  is 
arrived  at.  The  grants  to  English  Dissenters  came  about  in  this 
way — In  A.D.  1722,  Sir  Robert  Walpole,  then  Chancellor  of  the 
Exchequer,  recommended  George  I.  to  pay  out  of  the  Royal  Treasury 
an  allowance  to  certain  distressed  Dissenting  ministers  as  a  charit- 
able grant  from  the  king's  personal  bounty  ;  hence  it  was  known  as 
the  Regium  Donum.  The  recipients  were  Presbyterians.  Independ- 
ents, and  Baptists  in  equal  proportions.  On  the  other  hand  the 
Church  of  England  has  received  as  follows:  From  A.D.  1809 
to  A.D.  1820  annual  grants  of  £100,000  for  the  augmentation 
of  poor  livings,  which  was  distributed  through  Queen  Anne's 
Bounty  Board.  In  A.D.  1818,  £1,000,000  was  granted  in  aid  of 
church  building,  and  this  was  supplemented  by  £500,000  more  in 
A.D.  182-1.  Thus  the  total  sum  received  by  the  National  Church 
is  £289.283  less  than  that  bestowed  upon  Nonconformists.  It 
has  been  stated  that  the  two  large  grants  for  church  building 
did  not  come  out  of  the  taxes,  but  was  the  surplus  of  a  war 
indemnity  paid  to  this  country  by  Austria  after  the  battle  of 
Waterloo,  and  that  it  was  ungrudgingly  given  as  a  thankoffering. 
"  For  liberty,  and  triumphs  011  the  main, 

And  laurelled  armies— not  to  be  withstood, 

What  serve  they  ?  if,  on  transitory  good 

Intent,  and  sedulous  of  abject  gain 

The  State  (ah,  surely  not  preserved  in  vain  !) 

Forbear  to  shape  due  channels  which  the  flood 

Of  sacred  trnth  may  enter — till  it  brood 

O'er  the  wide  realm." 

Great  Britain  had  lately  enjoyed  a  large  measure  of  prosperity, 
and  everyone  felt  liberally  minded ;  the  only  sad  reflection  being 

I     See  Lord  3elborn--'s  Defencr  of  the  Church  (Macmillan  2/6  pp.  211—218. 


230  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    Oh 

that  vice  and  infidelity  had  far  too  long  disgraced  our  nation. 
The  'Evangelical  Revival  '  had  proved  that  religion  could  stem  the 
torrent  of  iniquity  ;  and  it  was  a  wise  policy  for  the  advisers 
of  George  III.  to  encourage  the  local  endeavours  of 
Churchmen  to  build  new  churches  in  poor  and  populous  parishes. 
The  sums  received  for  the  repairing  and  building  of  churches  were 
expended  by  a  Church  Building  C  jmmission,  and  from  its  report  in 
1831  we  find  that  some  of  the  money  went  in  loans,  and  some 
'  was  spent  in  Scotland,  but  that  most  was  given  in  small  grants  to 
meet  private  benefactions  contributed  by  the  localities  for  which  the 
new  churches  were  provided. 

The  high  favour  with  which  the  government  then  regarded  the 
Church  is  mainly  due  to  the  remarkable  influence  of  Joshua  Watson 
who  was  the  leader  in  all  Church  enterprises  during  the  first  quarter 
of  this  century.  He  extended  the  influence  of  the  S.P.C.K.  by  organ- 
ising depositories  all  over  England  ;  and  was  the  prime  mover  in  the 
formation  and  early  work  of  the  National  Society  in  1811,  of  which 
we  shall  speak  more  fully  in  chapter  XXIX.  As  treasurer  of  the 
S.P.C.K.  he  was  instrumental  in  handing  over  to  the  S.P.G.  the 
missionary  trusts  of  S.P.C.K.,  so  that  each  society  might  pursue  a 
single  object  with  undivided  energy.  The  Indian  Episcopate  was 
the  immediate  outcome  of  this  simplification.  He  also  promoted  the 
Incorporated  Church  Building  Society,  A.D.  1818,  which  has 
been  instrumental  in  stimulating  marvellous  liberality  among  Church 
people  to  provide  free  and  unappropriated  seats  for  the  poor  in  the 
large  majority  of  our  churches.  During  the  first  twenty  years  of 
the  19th  century,  the  average  number  of  churches  built  yearly  all 
over  England  was  less  than  five,  but  in  the  next  ten  years  over  300 
were  built.  It  was  through  Mr.  Watson's  indefatigable  zeal  that 
the  grants  for  church-building  were  voted  by  Parliament.  He  was 
one  of  the  commissioners  appointed  to  distribute  those  grants  ;  and 
it  was  through  him  that  State  ai-1  wis  provided  to  create  the  West 
Indian  Episcopate,  in  order  to  cement  that  colony  to  the  mother 
country,  lest  it  might  secede  as  America  had  done. 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY.  231 

CHAPTER      XXVIII. 
RELIGIOUS  LIBERTY. 

"  A  State  whose  generous  will  through  earth  is  dealt ; 
A  State — which,  balancing  herself  between 
License  and  slavish  order,  dares  be  free." — IVordfWorlk. 

1.  Removal  of  Nonconformist  Disabilities. — It  was  our 
duty  to  state  the  means  by  which  certain  repressive  laws  against 
different  bodies  of  religionists  came  upon  the  statute  book.  It  is  now 
a  more  pleasing  task  to  show  the  various  steps  by  which  they  were 
removed.  The  principle  of  toleration  was  laid  down  in  the  reign  of 
William  III.  (page  196).  for,  by  the  Toleration  Act,  as  Judge  Mans- 
field pointed  out,  '  the  Dissenter's  way  of  worship  is  permitted  and 
allowed  ;  it  is  not  only  exempted  from  punishment,  but  rendered 
innocent  and  lawful  ;  it  is  established  ;  it  is  put  under  the  protection, 
and  is  not  merely  under  the  connivance  of  the  law.'  At  the  same 
time  it  was  felt  by  each  succeeding  government  that  civil  offices 
ought  not  to  be  placed  in  the  charge  of  anyone  who  was  not  a 
Churchman,  and  therefore  Nonconformists  were  disabled  from  taking 
any  official  share  in  the  affairs  of  state.  In  process  of  time,  when 
the  fear  of  recurrence  to  the  excesses  of  the  Commonwealth  had 
subsided,  these  disabilities  were  found  to  press  hardly  on  many  con- 
scientious persons,  and  also  to  deprive  the  realm  of  the  advice  and 
co-operation  of  many  worthy  citizens.  During  the  reign  of  Queen 
Anne,  as  we  saw,  'occasional  conformity'  was  declared  illegal; 
although  the  Act  which  made  it  so  was  soon  repealed.  But  the 
'  Test  '  and  '  Corporation '  Acts  remained  in  force.  In  1 728  an 
annual  Act  of  Indemnity  came  into  existence,  renewed  from  year  to 
year,  which  relieved  certain  office  holders  from  the  penalties  imposed 
by  those  Acts  for  non-reception  of  Holy  Communion  ;  though  the 
Acts  themselves  remained  in  force.  The  Toleration  Act  of  1689  had 
exempted  all  Nonconformists,  except  Romanists  and  Socinians.  from 
subscription  to  the  disciplinary  portions  of  the  39  Articles,  though 
they  were  obliged  to  sign  the  doctrinal  parts  ;  but  after  1779,  sub- 
scription to  the  Articles  was  no  longer  required  from  '  Protestant 
Nonconformists '  who  declared  their  belief  in  the  Old  and  New 
Testaments.  After  this  the  Test  and  Corporation  Acts  did  not  press 
hardly  on  Dissenters  ;  yet  their  retention  on  the  statute  book  was  a 
serious  reflection  upon  the  social  status  of  those  who  did  not  wish 
to  attend  Church  services.  In  1787  an  attempt  was  made  to  repeal 
the  Test  and  Corporation  Acts  altogether  ;  but  the  House  of  Commons 
decided,  by  a  large  majority,  to  retain  what  were  then  considered 
national  safeguards.  Two  years  later  a  second  attempt  was  made 
and  failed,  though  only  by  twenty  votes,  and  for  many  years  no 
further  action  was  taken  to  repeal  them  en  bloc.  Effort*  were  made 


232  ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    ON 

however,  to  repeal  them  piecemeal,  by  obtaining  cxemptiou  from 
certain  exceptional  clauses.  In  1812  Dissenting  ministers  were 
relieved  from  certain  penalties  of  the  '  Conventicle  Act '  which  the 
Toleration  Act  of  1689  had  not  repealed  ;  and  in  1813  the  Socinian 
assemblies  which  had  hitherto  suffered  the  greatest  repression,  were 
allowed  free  expression  of  their  peculiar  interpretations.  After  this 
the  Test  and  Corporation  Acts  were  a  nullity,  and  in  1828  they  ceased 
to  form  part  of  the  law  of  the  land.  Thus  the  last  obstacle  to  civil 
and  religious  liberty,  so  far  as  the  public  profession  of  Christianity 
was  concerned,  was  removed.  But  there  were  still  some  matters  in 
which  Nonconformist  ministers  were  at  a  disadvantage  as  compared 
with  the  Church  clergy,  e.g.,  until  183C  no  marriage  was  valid  unless 
solemnised  by  a  Clergyman  of  the  Church  of  England  ;  but  in  that 
year  the  legislature  accepted  the  principle  that  had  been  in  vogue 
during  the  Commonwealth  by  regarding  marriage  as  a  civil  contract 
merely.  From  that  time,  by  having  the  civil  registrar  in  attendance, 
Nonconformists  might  be  married  in.  any  Dissenting  place  of  worship. 
By  the  Act  3  and  4  William  IV.,  c.  30,  chapels  were  put  upon  equal 
terms  with  the  ancient  churches  by  being  exempted  from  taxation,  so 
long  as  they  are  exclusively  appropriated  to  public  religious  worship  ; 
and  thus,  by  many  successive  stages,  Protestant  Nonconformists 
obtained  for  their  communities  the  fullest  recognition  and  protection 
by  the  State. 

2.  Encroachments  upon  Church  Privileges.— If  we  were 
to  imagine  that  Dissenters  would  be  satisfied  with  such  results  we 
should  be  mistaken  ;  for  perfect  religious  liberty  was  by  no  means 
enough  for  many  of  them.  Perfect  equality  of  possessions  and 
privileges  was  and  is  their  further  aim.  Under  the  title  of  the 
'Anti-State  Church  Society,'  founded  in  1814,  many  opponents  of 
the  Church  of  England  have  agitated  to  despoil  her  of  her  rightful 
inheritance  ;  and  when  it  was  found  that  the  name  of  their  association 
was  too  repellent  they  changed  it  to  "  The  Society  for  the  Liberation 
of  Religion  from  State  Patronage  and  Control,"  now  better  known 
by  the  abbreviated  name  of  the  Liberation  Society.  The  principles 
of  its  members  seem  to  be  akin  to  the  extremest  communistic  ideas  ; 
for  their  chief  motive  is  the  seizure  and  distribution  of  the  Church's 
material  possessions,  so  that  she  may  be  prevented  from  maintaining 
her  ancient  and  inherited  position  as  the  chief  religious  teacher  of 
the  land.  With  this  Society  none  of  the  cherished  heritages  of 
Churchmen  are  sacred,  and  many  of  them  have  already  been  for- 
feited to  its  determined  agitations,  e.g. — In  days  when  Noncon- 
formity was  unknown  each  parish  provided  for  the  repair  of  its 
Church  and  churchyard  by  a  special  rate,  which  was  levied  like  any 
other  local  tax.  An  attempt  was  made  by  Parliament  in  1833  to 
abolish  Church  Rates,  although  their  payment  dated  from  the  most 
ancient  times.  That  attempt  failed  ;  but  the  Liberation  Society 


ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY.  233 

agitated,  and  from  time  to  time  caused  resolutions  against  them  to 
be  moved  in  the  House  of  Commons.  In  18:51  a  '  Church  Rate 
Abolition  Bill '  obtained  an  equal  number  of  votes  for  ami  against  it 
in  the  House  of  Commons,  and  therefore,  as  is  customary,  the 
Speaker  gave  his  casting  vote  against  it.  Eventually  (1868)  the 
compulsory  payment  of  Church  Kates  was  abolished,  though  in  certain 
places  they  are  paid  voluntarily.  Again,  it  is  well-known  that  the 
colleges  of  our  Universities  were  founded  by  Churchmen  for  higher 
education  in  the  principles  of  the  Church  of  England.  Accordingly, 
all  persons  who  wished  to  avail  themselves  of  educational  facilities 
therein  were  expected  to  attend  Church  services  regularly,  and 
subscribe  Church  formularies  before  they  could  obtain  degrees  or 
fellowships.  In  1871.  these  University  Tests  were  abolished.  Further, 
Nonconformists  had  all  along  been  as  free  to  acquire  sites  for  bury- 
ing grounds  as  they  were  to  possess  bnildin.es  for  religious  worship. 
But  they  soon  desired  to  share  with  Churchmen  the  old  churchyards, 
which  had  been  acquired  and  consecrated  for  the  interment  of  those 
whose  profession  of  Christianity  had  been  sealed  by  the  Sacrament  of 
Holy  Baptism,  and  which  were  as  much  the  exclusive  property  of  the 
Church  of  England  as  any  of  her  fabrics  are.  The  exclusive  right 
and  privilege  of  the  Church  of  England  clergy  to  perform  religions 
services  in  those  churchyards  was  the  envy  of  Liberationists  ;  and 
they  rested  not  until  they  succeeded  in  passing  an  Act  (1880)  by 
which  Nonconformist  ministers  might  perform  funeral  services  in 
land  so  consecrated  ;  although  their  communities  had  for  a  long  time 
ceased  to  take  any  part  in  contributing  to  the  repair  of  churchyards. 
We  know  that  even  this  is  insufficient  to  satisfy  them,  but  we"  must 
earnestly  endeavour  to  prevent  the  fulfilment  of  their  ultimate  desire 
to  use  our  chuichesfor  Nonconformist  public  worship.  They  have 
every  liberty  to  worship  God  as  they  please  ;  they  have  fabrics  and 
possessions  in  and  by  which  they  may  do  so  ;  we  have  no  desire  to 
interfere  with  them  in  the  exercise  of  such  liberties  or  the  enjoyment 
of  such  possessions  ;  but  Churchmen  must  be  thoroughly  determined 
to  withstand  their  efforts  to  encroach  further  upon  the  privileges  and 
rights  of  the  National  Church. 

3.  Removal  of  Romanist  Disabilities. — We  have  seen  that 
no  relief  was  allowed  to  the  Romanists  by  the  Toleration  Act  of  1689  ; 
and  the  chief  reason  why  the  Test  and  Corporation  Acts  were  not 
repealed  sooner  was  that  many  Nonconformists,  who  have  ever  been 
extremely  bitter  against  the  Church  of  Rome,  were  anxious  to  exclude 
Romanists  from  participating  in  the  benefits  of  such  repeal.  In 
1778,  a  measure  of  relief  was  accorded  to  the  Romanists,  at  the 
instance  of  Sir  George  Saviile,  who  obtained  the  repeal  of  an  Act  of 
1698  which  had  allowed  the  '  Protestant '  children  of  Romanists  to 
exclude  their  parents  from  inheriting  property,  and  younger  children 
who  were  Protestant  to  supplant  their  elder  brethren  who  might  be 


234  ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 

Romanists.  About  the  same  time  Chief  Justice  Mansfield  put  a 
liberal  construction  on  other  penal  laws  against  Romanists,  when 
they  were  brought  before  him  in  the  Law  Courts.  It  may  be  taken 
as  an  illustration  of  the  deep  seated  horror  of  papalism  in  the  nation 
that  these  humane  measures  were  considered  by  many  as  dangerous 
to  the  country.  An  ultra- Protestant  named  Lord  George  Gordon 
drew  up  a  petition  to  Parliament  against  any  concessions  to  those 
whom  he  called  '  the  followers  of  Antichrist,'  which  was  very 
extensively  signed.  Lord  Gordon  proceeded  with  it  to  the  House  of 
Lords  at  the  head  of  a  howling  mob  of  enthusiasts,  who  shamefully 
illtreated  the  aged  Judge  Mansfield  and  some  of  the  bishops.  They 
afterwards  burned  the  Romanist  chapels,  and  the  private  houses  of 
known  adherents  of  that  religion,  together  with  the  mansion  of 
Lord  Mansfield.  They  then  destroyed  the  prisons,  and  attempted  to 
attack  the  Bank  of  England,  where  however  they  were  resisted  by  a 
strong  body  of  soldiers  (A.D.  1780).  Here  we  may  remind  the  reader 
of  the  two  chief  reasons  for  the  perpetually  recurring  outbreaks  of 
popular  fury  against  Romanism,  whereby  full  liberty  and  license  were 
accorded  to  every  petty  non-papal  conventicle  before  a  Romanist  Relief 
Bill  could  become  law.  There  was  first  the  innate  dread  of  any 
recurrence  to  the  foreign  despotism,  which  had  wrought  such  evil  to 
the  realm  in  mediasval  times,  and  such  persecution  of  Christians 
at  the  time  of  the  Reformation ;  but  there  was  a  very  natural  fear 
besides  that  toleration  of  Romanists  would  result  in  the  spread  of 
the  erroneous  doctrines  and  practices  which  the  Council  of  Trent  had 
declared  absolute.  At  the  same  time  it  was  not  possible  for  religious 
liberty  to  make  progress  in  the  country  unless  the  Romanists  were 
permitted  to  share  therein.  The  annual  Act  of  Indemnity  for 
Dissenters  contrasted  so  strangely  with  the  continued  exclusion  of 
Romanists  from  official  positions  in  the  State  that,  in  1817  it  was 
found  impossible  any  longer  to  exclude  Romanists  from  the  Army  or 
Navy.  In  1825,  a  bill  was  read  a  third  time  in  the  House  of  Commons 
which  would  have  repealed  all  the  penal  statutes  against  members  of 
the  Church  of  Rome.  This  failed  to  pass  the  House  of  Lords,  and 
was  dropped  for  a  season.  After  the  Test  and  Corporation  Acts 
had  been  repealed,  the  arguments  against  the  retention  of  Romanist 
disabilities  would  not  hold  water  ;  and  Mr.  Peel  re-introduced  the 
bill  for  the  emancipation  'of  Romanists  from  the  oppressive  laws 
against  them.  It  passed  both  houses  by  large  majorities,  and  became 
law  in  April,  1829.  Thus  all  Christians  of  every  sort  and  kind  were 
set  free  from  every  vestige  of  oppression. 

4.  The  New  Papal  Hierarchy. — It  will  now  be  seen  that 
Romanists  made  full  use  of  their  freedom.  The  arguments  for  their 
emancipation  had  gained  a  host  of  friends  for  them,  and  they  pro- 
ceeded to  erect  churches  with  vigour.  We  shall  see  in  the  next 
chapter  that  they  waited  on  the  outskirts  of  an  ecclesiastical  revival 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY, 


235 


within  the  Church  of  England,  ready  to  entice  by  fair  promises  of 
rewards  and  dignities,  such  as  should  find  themselves  too  much 
restrained  by  her  formularies.  Having  in  this  way  won  over  to  them- 
selves several  famous  and  many  rich  members  of  the  National  Church 
they  floated  their  deeply  planned  but  long  delayed  scheme  of  a  rival 
Episcopate.  On  September  30th,  1850,  a  papal  bull  was  published  in 
England  which  divided  our  country  into  certain  ecclesiastical  divisions 
or  dioceses,  each  of  which  was  to  be  governed  for  the  pope  by  a 
bishop,  under  a  so  called  '  Archbishop  of  Westminster.'  There  had  not 
previously  been  any  Roman  bishops  in  England,  save  the  bishops  in 
partibus  and  vicars  apostolic,  who  had  not  ventured  to  assume 
territorial  titles  ;  and  this  aggression  of  the  pope,  by  which  a'number 
of  prelates  responsible  to  none  but  himself  were  imposed  upon  our 
nation,  was  a  distinct  intrenchment  upon'the  prerogatives  of  the 


THE   CITY  OF   ROME. 

English  Crown.  A  storm  of  indignation  rose  against  the  bull.  "  Is 
it  here,"  said  The  Times,  "  in  Westminster,  among  ourselves,  and  by 
the  English  throne,  that  an  Italian  priest  is  to  parcel  out  the  spiritual 
dominion  of  this  country,  to  employ  the  renegades  of  our  national 
Church  to  restore  foreign  usurpation  over  the  consciences  of  men,  and 
to  sow  division  in  our  political  society  by  an  undisguised  and 
systematic  hostility  to  the  institutions  most  nearly  identified  with  our 
national  freedom  and  our  national  faith."  So  unparalleled  and  furious 
was  the  opposition  from  the  public  and  the  press  that  an  '  Ecclesiasti- 
cal Titles  Act '  was  passed  as  a  protest,  which  declared  the  bull  null 
and  void,  and  imposed  a  fine  of  £100  on  all  who  should  try  to  carry 
it  into  effect.  The  nation  was  somewhat  quieted  by  this  measure, 


236  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

but  the   Romanists  were  sufficiently  numerous  and   influential   to 
render  the  Act  a  dead  letter.     It  was  repealed  in  1871. 

That  there  is  very  little  hope  of  the  Church  of  Rome  forsaking  its 
errors  on  matters  of  faith  may  be  judged  from  the  fact  that  in 
December,  1869  a  great  Council  was  held  at  the  Vatican,  where  the 
pope  holds  his  court  ;  which  not  only  reaffirmed  all  the  erroneous 
tenets  of  the  Council  of  Trent,  but  formulated  also  other  and  more 
pernicious  dogmas  as  matters  of  essential  belief  :  notably,  that  it  is 
impossible  for  the  bishop  of  Rome  to  do  wrong  when  acting  officially, 
generally  called  the  doctrine  of  Papal  Infallibility  ;  and  that  the 
Blessed  Virgin  Mary  was  conceived  by  her  mother  without  human 
sin,  which  is  known  as  the  doctrine  of  the  Immaculate  Conception. 
Neither  of  these  novel  dogmas  have  the  slightest  warrant  in  Scrip- 
ture, nor  can  they  be  proved  by  the  practice  of  the  primitive  Church 
or  the  writings  of  the  Early  Christian  Fathers ;  and  the  attempt  to 
formulate  them  now  as  doctrines  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church  be- 
cause, forsooth,  the  prelates  of  the  new  papal  hierarchy  in  England, 
and  the  bishops  in  partibus  who  upheld  papal  pretensions  in  other 
parts  of  the  world,  gave  an  appearance  of  '  universality '  to  that 
Vatican  Council  by  their  presence,  is  a  daring  violation  of  history 
and  reason  such  as  cannot  be  paralleled  outside  the  Roman  obedience. 
The  most  recent  phases  of  Rome's  modern  aggression  have  been  the 
reception  of  a  papal  nuncio  in  Ireland,  with  a  consequent  interfer- 
ence by  the  bishop  of  Rome  in  Irish  politics  ;  and  the  unblushing 
abuse  of  the  pulpit  on  the  part  of  Romish  bishops  in  England  to  pro- 
mote a  revival  of  temporal  power  for  the  Papacy,  in  Italy  to  begin  with . 

5.  Removal  of  Jewish  Disabilities.— In  the  year  12'.)0 
Edward  I.  expelled  the  Jews  from  England.  Public  opinion  at  that 
time  wras  greatly  stirred  against  them  because  of  their  usury,  and 
because  of  a  curious  antipathy  to  them  as  a  religious  community 
owing  to  their  ancestors'  crime  on  Calvary.  From  that  time,  and 
until  the  days  of  Oliver  Cromwell,  the  Jews  were  only  admitted  into 
England  upon  sufferance  ;  certainly  they  were  not  allowed  the  public 
exercise  of  their  belief.  During  and  since  the  Commonwealth  they 
were  included  in  the  same  category  as  Nonconformist  sects,  but  were 
precluded  from  all  public  offices  because  of  their  inability  to  take 
any  kind  of  Christian  oath.  In  the  struggle  for  religious  liberty  not 
only  did  no  one  care  for  them,  but  by  common  consent  their  cause 
was  studiously  omitted  from  every  statute  introduced  to  Parliament 
for  the  relief  of  Nonconformists.  In  the  first  Parliament  that  met 
after  the  great  Reform  Bill,  a  Jewish  Relief  Bill  was  introduced  to 
the  Commons  and  read  three  times,  but  on  being  sent  to  the  House 
of  Lords  it  was  thrown  out.  That  same  year  (1833)  an  Act  was  passed 
by  which  Quakers  and  others  were  allowed  to  substitute  an  affirmation 
'on  the  true  faith  of  a  Christian'  for  the  Oath  of  Allegiance  ;  but 
very  few  were  prepared  to  admit  Jews  into  the  legislature  of  a 


ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY.  237 

Christian  land.  In  November,  1847,  Baron  Rotfitchild  was  elected 
by  the  City  of  London,  where  his  high  character,  beneficence,  and 
honourable  dealing  had  won  for  him  much  fame.  The  majority  of 
the  members  of  the  House  of  Commons  were  willing  that  he  should 
sit  among  them  and  re-introduced  the  Jewish  Relief  Bill,  but  the 
House  of  Lords  again  rejected  it  by  163  votes  to  128.  Nothing  daunted,. 
Baron  Rothschild  went  again  to  his  constituents  and  was  re-elected  ; 
though  of  course  he  could  not  sit  under  the  existing  law.  At  the 
general  election  of  1852.  he  was  returned  for  the  third  time ;  and 
once  more  a  Relief  Bill  passed  the  Commons,  but  failed  to  find  a 
favourable  majority  in  the  House  of  Lords.  The  Bishops  were 
naturally  against  it."  Indeed,  it  is  hardly  possible  to  conceive  how  they 
could  be"  otherwise,  for  they  were  representatives  of  an  estate  of  the 
realm  whose  object. from  time  immemorial,  had  been  to  uphold  the 
Christian  character  of  our  nation  and  its  laws.  In  April,  1857,  there 
was  another  general  election  ;  and  as  soon  as  the  excitement  and  extra 
Parliamentary  business  that  followed  the  Indian  Jfutiny  had 
subsided,  the"  Jewish  Eelief  Bill  was  once  more  brought  before 
Parliament.  It  empowered  either  House  to  modify  its  oath  in  the 
case  of  Jews  by  special  resolution.  This  time  the  House  of  Lords 
accepted  the  measure  by  143  votes  to  97.  Public  offices  were  thus 
opened  to  all  persons  who  believe  in  a  Supreme  Being.  It  was  at 
this  time  that  the  Government  of  India  was  transferred  from  the 
East  India  Company  to  the  English  Crown. 

6.  The  Irish  Church. — On  page  178  we  briefly  reviewed  the 
progress  of  events  connected  with  the  Anglican  Church  in  Ireland  up 
to  the  reign  of  James  IL  As  briefly  we  must  glance  at  its  subsequent 
history.  After  the  victories  of  William  III.  over  the  forces  which 
sought  to  restore  James  II.  Eomanists  were  forbidden  to  sit  in  the 
Irish  Parliament ;  and  many  repressive  laws  were  passed  against 
them  during  the  reigns  of  William  III.  and  Queen  Anne.  In  17"4 
the  Test  Act  was  extended  to  Ireland,  and  in  1713  the  Schism  Act 
(see  page  209)  was  put  in  force  there.  William  III.  had  restored  the 
Anglican  clergy  to  the  Irish  benefices,  whence  they  had  been 
excluded  by  the  Romanists  under  Tyrconnel's  rule  ;  but  the  mischief 
of  this  was  that  the  English  government  made  use  of  the  clergy,  or 
at  any  rate  of  the  bishops,  in  Ireland  to  anglicize  that  country  and  re- 
press all  native  interests.  In  1719  the  English  Parliament  undertook  to- 
legislate  for  Ireland  ;  and  when  it  was  found  that  the  Romanist 
electorate  predominated,  the  'Irishry'  were  not  allowed  to  vote. 
Clergy  were  permitted  to  hold  any  number  of  benefices  in  plurality, 
owing  to  the  loss  of  glebe  land  through  the  political  disturbances. 
The  churches  fell  into  decay  and  the  parsonages  went  to  ruin. 
It  was  hardly  likely  that  the  natives  would  care  much  to  belong- 
to  a  Church  which  they  identified  with  repressive  legislation. 
In  1779  Dissenters  were  admitted  to  civil  offices  in  Ireland,  but  there 


238 


ILLUSTRATED   NOTES  ON 


was  no  relief  for  Romanists.  In  1782?a  long  agitation  resulted  in  the 
sister  isle  regaining  its  Parliamentary  independence,  although  it  was 
still  subject  to  the  English  Crown.  The  following  year  bills  for  the 
relief  of  Romanists  were  passed  in  the  Irish  Parliament,  and  the 
franchise  was  restored  to  them.  But  soon  after  an  association  of 
malcontents,  called  the  United  Irishmen,  entered  into  treasonable 
correspondence  with  [France  ;  and  stirred  up  rebellion  against  the 
English  rule  (1794).  It  was  then  that  the  ultra  Protestants  in 
, . Ireland  formed  them- 
selves into  Orange 
Lodges  as"  a  counter 
movement  to  that  of 
the  United  Irishmen. 
The  rebellion  broke 
out  in  1798,  and  was 
fiot  suppressed  with- 
out much  cruelty ; 
the  result  being  that 
Ireland  and  Ireland's 
Church  were  united 
to  England  and  Eng- 
land's Church  by  the 
'Act  of  Union'  in 
1800.  In  1831  Parlia- 
ment voted  £30,000 
towards  elementary 
education  in  Ireland  ; 
but  owing  to  the 
religious  rivalry  and 
bitterness  this  money 
was  wisely  restricted 
to  'undenominational 
schools.'  The  opposi- 
tion to  the  Anglican 
Church  in  Ireland 
now  became  very 
great.  The  tithes  were 
unpaid,  and  the  clergy 
were  starving  ;  and 
therefore  many  people  welcomed  the  'Irish  Church  Temporalities 
Act'  of  1833,  by  which  ten  of  the  ancient  bishoprics  were 
suppressed  and  £1,000,000  voted  to  the  clergy  towards  com- 
pensation for  their  arrears  of  tithe.  There  nsed  to  be  four  Irish 
archbishops  and  twenty-seven  bishops ;  now  there  are  only  two 
archbishops,  Armagh  and  Dublin,  and  eleven  bishops.  The  sees 
were  not  altogether  suppressed,  but  united  with  others  ;  and  most 
of  the  present  Irish  bishops  bear  the  title  of  two  or  three  ancient 


CHOIB   OF  ARMAGH   CATHEDRAL 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY.  239 

bishoprics  in  their  official  names.  Soon  after  this  a  formidable 
agitation  was  directed  against  the  Church  in  Ireland,  and  in  1856 
an  Act  was  introduced  to  the  House  of  Commons  to  disestablish  it. 
The  bill  was  rejected  by  163  to  93.  The  agitation  was  continued 
with  vigour  and  was  made  a  party  political  question  in  1868  by  Mr. 
Gladstone,  then  prime  minister ;  who  in  March,  1869,  brought  in  a  new 
bill  to  disestablish  and  disendow  the  Church  in  Ireland  as  a  govern- 
ment measure  ;  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  its  maintenance  had  been 
guaranteed  by  the  Act  of  Union,  and  that  its  title  to  property  was 
more  ancient  than  any  other  species  of  pVoperty  in  Ireland.  We 
need  not  stay  to  explain  the  steps  by  which  this  measure  passed 
through  its  various  phases ;  it  is  sufficient  to  say  that  it  became  law. 
and  that  its  provisions  came  into  force  on  and  after  January  1,  1>71. 
The  surplus  funds  of  the  Irish  Church,  after  the  vested  interests  of 
incumbents  were  provided  for,  have  since  been  applied  to  the  support 
of  hospitals  and  lunatic  asylums,  the  commutation  of  grants  to  Irish 
Nonconformists  (page  229),  the  permanent  endowment  of  a  Roman 
Catholic  college  at  Maynooth  which  had  been  receiving  an  annual 
Government  grant  since  1845,  and  other  charitable  objects  needing 
funds  from  time  to  time.  Liberationists  are  anxious  to  make  the  dis- 
establishment of  the  Irish  Church  a  precedent  for  similar  measures  re- 
specting the  English  Church  ;  notwithstanding  that  the  circumstances 
of  the  two  Churches  are  vastly  different.  The  present  agitation  for 
the  disunion  of  England  and  Ireland  is  closely  connected  with 
the  disunion  of  the  Churches,  and  provides  an  obvious  warning  to  the 
English  people  that  they  should  avoid  all  temptations  to  meddle 
with  the  status  and  possessions  of  our  own  National  Church. 

7.  Removal  of  Atheist  Disabilities.— As  one  by  one  the 
various  religious  bodies,  Dissenters,  Romanists,  and  Jews,  were 
admitted  to  privileges  from  which  the  misdeeds  of  their  ancestors 
had  deprived  them,  but  which  their  own  tried  loyalty  proved  them 
to  be  not  unworthy  of,  the  Church  of  England  submitted  with  good 
grace  ;  though  she  had  felt  it  to  be  her  bounden  duty  to  resist  and 
warn  until  there  was  sufficient  assurance  that  her  own  rights  and  the 
honour  of  the  realm  would  be  preserved.  Of  the  Nonconformists  it 
could  be  shown  that  they  were  professing  Christians  after  all  ;  and 
of  the  Jews  there  could  be  no  doubt  that  they  were  fervent  and 
traditional  worshippers  of  Jehovah,  though  they  declined  to  recognise 
t  he  Messiahship  of  Jesus.  The  religious  character  of  the  nation  need 
not  be  endangered  by  their  admission  to  the  fullest  civil  privileges  or 
the  widest  religious  liberty  ;  though  the  rights  of  the  National 
Church  might  be  encroached  upon.  It  was  otherwise  when  avowed 
atheists  and  deniers  of  God's  existence  sought  to  tread  in  their  steps. 
It  was  indeed  well  known  that  some  of  those  who  outwardly  con- 
formed to  the  conditions  of  membership  in  the  House  of  Commons 
were  unbelievers  at  heart,  but  still  it  was  something  that  Parliament 


240  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

shonM  possess  "the  form  of  godliness."  But  in  1880  Mr.  Charles 
Bradlaugh,  an  avowed  atheist,  was  elected  to  the  House  of  Commons 
and  a  new  set  of  disabilities  had  to  be  removed  To  his  credit  we 
must  record  that  he  preferred  not  to  sail  in  under  false  colours  ;  and 
to  the  credit  of  Parliament  we  must  remember  that  it  at  first  refused 
to  allow  him  to  take  his  seat.  Having  been  declared  disqualified  for 
membership  the  seat  for  which  he  was  returned  was  declared  vacant  ; 
but  his  constituents  returned  him  again  and  again.  In  1882,  Mr. 
Bradlaugh  unwisely  took  the  law  into  hu  own  hands  by  going 
through  the  farce  of  administering  the  Oath  of  Allegiance  to  himself 
although  he  had  previously  declared  the  words  '  So  help  me,  God,' 
to  be  mean'nglessto  him.  An  oath  is  a  religious  act  by  which  God  is 
called  to  witness  for  the  confirmation  of  some  matter  of  doubt.  It 
is  an  appeal  of  two  parties  to  Almighty  God  by  which  He  is  called 
to  witness  the  act  about  to  be  performed.  Not  only  cannot  a 
professed  Atheist,  therefore,  take  an  oath,  which  is  an  appeal  to  a 
Being  in  whose  existence  and  attributes  he  does  not  believe  ; 
but  to  administer  it  to  him  is  an  insult  and  mockery  to  Him  who 
is  invoked  by  the  oath,  and  to  whom  it  is  an  appeal.  The  House  of 
Commons  voted  Mr.  Bradlangh's  expulsion  from  the  precincts  of  the 
house,  but  subsequently  allowed  him  the  run  of  the  private  rooms 
and  access  to  the  legislative  chamber  below  the  bar.  He  was  pre- 
cluded from  voting  under  heavy  penalties,  yet  he  had  obtained  a 
vantage  ground  from  which  he  could  influence  the  members,  and 
create  a  reversion  of  feeling  among  them  in  his  favour.  Ultimately 
(1885)  a  short  act  was  passed  by  which,  instead  of  the  customary 
parliamentary  oath,  a  member  could  qualify  for  his  seat  by  making 
the  following  affirmation  : 

'  "  I  A.  B.  do  solemnly,  sincerely,  and  truly  declare  and  affirm."  and  then  proceed 
with  the  words  of  the  oath  prescribed  by  law,  omitting  any  words  of  imprecation  or 
c-xlling  to  witness'  (Clause  2  of  the  Affirmation  Act,  1885). 

Under  thn  powers  of  this  act  Mr.  Bradlaugh  was  enabled  to  take  his 
seat ;  and  afterwards  showed  himself  very  anxious  to  get  rid  of  oaths 
of  every  kind.  In  1888  he  introduced  a  Bill  to  the  House  of 
Commons  to  abolish  oaths  in  parliament,  courts  of  law,  and  all  other 
places  ;  for  all  purposes  where  an  oath  has  hitherto  been  required  by 
law,  and  to  substitute  a  solemn  affirmation,  whenever  any  person 
should  object  to  be  sworn  on  the  ground  that  he  has  no  religious 
belief,  or  that  the  taking  of  an  oath  is  contrary  to  his  religious 
belief.'  After  the  addition  of  an  amendment  which  provided  for  the 
validity  of  oaths  when  taken,  and  their  continuance  wherever  they 
would  be  conscientiously  binding,  this  act  was  read  a  third  time  in  the 
House  of  Commons,  Aug.  9, 1888,  by  147  votes  to  60.  It  passed  the  House 
of  Lords  a  few  months  later,  so  that  nothing  now  remains  upon 
our  Statute  book  in  any  way  disabling  persons  from  enjoying 
the  fullest  license  to  do  as  they  please  in  matters  that  affect  their 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  241 

religious  or  non-religious  opinions.  Let  us  hope,  however,  that  this 
last  concession  to  atheists  and  nonjurors  will  not  increase  the 
number  of  those  who  desire  to  destroy  religion  altogether. 

8.  The  Ecclesiastical  Commission.— As  the  various  religious 
bodies  obtained  more  and  more  liberty,  they  proceeded  to  use  it  in 
attacking  the  Church  of  England.  They  claimed  that  the  recognition 
and  protection  of  themselves  by  the  State  made  the  Church  no  longer 
co-extensive  in  theory  with  the  whole  nation,  and  clamoured  to  be 
exempt  from  contributing  to  its  support.  In  other  words,  every 
increase  of  privileges  for  Nonconformists  was  held  to  imply  a  corres- 
ponding decrease  of  privileges  in  the  National  Church.  They  sought 
to  benefit  themselves  at  her  expense.  Yet  although  the  functions  of 
Convocation  were  suspended,  so  that  the  Church  could  not  offer  any 
united  and  formal  protest  against  such  insidious  attacks,  there  has 
still  been  a  strong  sense  of  justice  pervading  the  majority  of  our 
civil  legislators  ;  through  which  her  external  foundations  have  been 
preserved  thus  far.  Parliament  has  never  yet  legislated  upon  spiritual 
questions  without  reference  to  the  clergy,  and  the  measures  which 
have  encroached  upon  the  temporalities  of  the  Church  in  any  way, 
have  not  seriously  affected  her  position.  At  the  time  of  the  Great 
Reform  Bill  agitation  the  wildest  statements  were  circulated  as  to 
the  fabulous  wealth  of  the  Church,  and  in  1831  a  Royal  Commission 
was  appointed  to  inquire  into  Ecclesiastical  revenues.  Churchmen 
were  needlessly  frightened  at  the  prospect  in  view,  for  although  the 
Commissioners  proposed  drastic  changes  in  their  several  reports  as 
to  the  redistribution  of  clerical  incomes,  nothing  but  advantage  has 
resulted  to  the  Church  from  their  labours.  There  was  no  desire  on 
the  part  of  Sir  Robert  Peel's  Government  to  alienate  Church  property, 
either  in  England  or  Ireland,  from  strictly  ecclesiastical  purposes  ; 
but  it  was  clear  that  the  anomalies  in  the  then  existing  distribution 
of  ecclesiastical  revenues  needed  readjustment.  In  days  when  the 
proportion  of  bishops  to  clergy  and  people  was  much  greater  than  in 
modern  times,  the  relative  incomes  were  not  seriously  unequal ;  but 
while  the  dissolution  of  monasteries  had  permanently  impoverished 
the  parish  clergy,  of  whom  many  more  were  absolutely  necessary,  the 
retention  of  capitular  estates  by  the  cathedral  bodies  through  all 
changes  made  the  revenues  of  dignitaries  seem  excessively  dispropor- 
tionate to  those  of  many  parochial  incumbents.  In  1836  the  Eccle- 
siastical Commissioners  were  incorporated  as  a  permanent  body  to 
dual  with  these  capitular  estates,  and  after  setting  aside  sufficient  for 
the  payment  of  specified  incomes  to  the  bishops  and  cathedral  staff, 
and  providing  suitable  residences  for  them,  to  apply  the  residue 
to  the  augmentation  of  poor  livings,  and  the  endowment  of  new  ones 
in  populous  places.  Still  more  salutary  was  the  recommendation  of 
the  Commissioners  that  no  benefice  was  thereafter  to  be  held  in 
commendam.  The  chief  sources  of  ecclesiastical  revenues  were  the 


242 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


tithes  of  the  produce  of  land.  From  the  earliest  times  they  had  been 
paid  in  kind,  and  many  tithe  barns  are  still  standing  which  were 
erected  for  storing  the  produce.  This  had  given  rise  to  many  harass- 
ing disputes  between  tithe  owners  and  tithe  payers  ;  and  to  set  such 
disputes  at  rest  an  act  was  passed  in  1836  (6  &  7  Wm.  IV.,  c.  71)  by 
which  tithes  in  kind  were  commuted  into  a  tithe  rent-charge  payable 
in  money  on  the  first  of  January  and  the  first  of  July  in  each  year. 
The  amount  of  the  rent-charge  in  any  year  was  to  be  fixed  according 
to  the  average  price  of  corn  during  the  seven  previous  years.  This 
measure  was  made  chiefly  in  the  interests  of  the  tithe  payers,  and  it 
is  estimated  that  the  Church  lost  a  considerable  portion  of  its  revenues 


THE    HOUSES  OF   PARLIAMENT. 

by  the  change  \  but  this  loss  has  been  more  than  compensated  by  the 
comparative  cessation  of  disputes.  Unfortunately  they  have  lately  been 
revived  by  Liberationist  agitators,  and  in  several  parts  of  the  country 
organised  opposition  has  been  started  against  paying  tithes  in  any 
form.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  innate  sense  of  justice  that  pre- 
eminently distinguishes  Englishmen  will  resent  the  new  phase  of 
communism  that  lies  at  the  root  of  this  hostile  movement. 

9.  Disestablishment. — The  first  serious  attack  upon  the  time- 
honoured  connection  between  the  Church  and  Realm  of  England 
occurred  at  the  time  of  the  Ecform  Bill.  The  bishops  had  exercised 
their  legislative  functions  by  voting  according  to  their  consciences 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  2-fS 

against  the  bill,  and  the  exasperated  promoters  of  it  menaced  them 
with  popular  opprobrium  for  so  doing,  and  charged  them  to  '  set  their 
houses  in  order.'  There  was  no  mistaking  the  significance  of  this 
outcry.  '  The  bishops  were  threatened  to  be  driven  from  their 
stations  because  they  did  not  vote  for  ministers ;  because  for  once 
they  had  thus  voted  upon  the  greatest  question  agitated  since  the 
Revolution.'  (Speech  of  Bishop  Philpotts.)  In  1834  Lord  Ripon 
actually  introduced  a  bill  to  suspend  the  legislative  and  judicial 
functions  of  the  Lords  Spiritual ;  but  this  unjust  attack  upon  the 
rights  of  the  foremost  estate  of  the  realm  was  rejected  by  125  votes 
to  28.  In  1851  '  a  judiciously  manipulated  religious  census '  gave 
an  apparent  though  grossly  inaccurate  numerical  superiority  over 
Churchmen  by  the  aggregate  combination  of  all  Nonconformists. 
The  Liberation  Society  then  redoubled  its  attacks  upon  the  National 
Church.  Its  methods  were  peculiar.  The  most  outrageous  miscon- 
ceptions of  the  Church's  history  and  position  were  unblushingly 
reiterated  and  published  broadcast ;  and  every  little  imperfection  in 
her  administration,  or  in  the  character  of  her  clergy,  was  magnified 
to  enormous  dimensions.  It  was  needful  that  something  should  be 
done  to  counteract  their  misrepresentations.  Accordingly,  in  1860 
a  new  organisation,  known  as  the  Church  Defence  Institution,  was 
formed  '  to  combine,  as  far  as  possible,  Churchmen  of  every  shade 
of  political  and  religious  opinion  in  the  maintenance  and  support  of 
the  Established  Church,  and  its  rights  and  privileges  in  relation  to 
the  State — particularly  as  regards  all  questions  affecting  its  welfare 
likely  to  become  the  subject  of  legislative  action  ;  and  generally  to 
encourage  the  co-operation  of  Clergy  and  Laity,  in  their  several 
districts,  for  the  promotion  of  measures  conducive  to  the  welfare  of 
the  Church.'  The  Primate  is  president  of  the  Institution,  while  the 
Archbishop  of  York,  with  the  other  English  bishops,  are  its  vice- 
presidents.  Besides  which,  a  very  large  number  of  influential  lay- 
men, including  many  Peers  and  Members  of  Parliament,  irrespective 
of  political  bias,  are  on  its  executive  committee.  Owing  to  its  con- 
tinued vigilance  and  enterprise  the  external  enemies  of  the  Church 
are  kept  well  in  check,  and  the  clergy  are  consequently  less  dis- 
tracted from  their  spiritual  ministrations.  The  disestablishment 
and  disendowment  of  the  Irish  Church  gave  a  fresh  impulse  to  the 
antagonists  of  National  Christianity,  and  in  1871  a  motion  for 
dealing  with  the  English  Church  in  similar  fashion  was  brought  into 
the  House  of  Commons.  It  was  rejected  by  37-1  votes  to  89,  a 
majority  of  285.  Undaunted  by  defeat  the  motion  was  reintroduced 
in  1872,  but  the  minority  who  supported  it  had  dwindled  down  to  61, 
while  the  majority  against  it  had  increased  to  295.  It  was  clear 
that  the  citadel  was  too  strong  to  be  brought  low,  so  the  enemies 
changed  their  tactics.  It  occurred  to  them  that  Wales  was  once  a 
separate  nation,  and  then  had  an  independent  Church  ;  they  therefore 
proceeded  to  agitate  for  dealing  with  religious  affairs  in  Wales 

I  2 


244  ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  Otf 

apart  from  England,  notwithstanding  that  the  Nations  and  Churches 
have  been  one  and  indivisible  for  centuries.  Fortunately  they  have 
not  been  able  to  disguise  their  ultimate  designs,  and  when  Church- 
men become  fully  sensible  of  the  great  wrong  that  is  intended  they 
will  not  hesitate  to  combine  against  its  committal. 

10.  Lawsuits  respecting  Doctrine  and  Ritual. — As  it  forms 
no  part  of  the  object  of  this  book  to  discuss  matters  of  doctrine  we 
may  briefly  pass  over  the  party  strifes  within  the  Church,  which  have 
engendered  unseemly  lawsuits,  by  enumerating  the  chief  results. 
The  Tractarian  Mo-cement  to  which  we  shall  refer  in  the  next  chapter, 
had  led  many  to  desire  and  institute  a  more  ornate  ceremonial  and 
symbolism  in  public  worship  than  their  immediate  forefathers  eared 
about,  or  even  dreamed  of  ;  and  many  earnest-minded  men  were  so 
scandalised  by  the  so-called  'innovations'  that  they  determined  to  go 
to  law  against  their  brethren,  '  and  test  the  legality  of  such  proceed- 
ings.' Had  Convocation  been  able  to  act  it  is  possible  that  such 
extreme  measures  might  have  been  avoided,  but  a  few  aggrieved  persons 
commenced  them,  and  there  has  been  a  constant  recurrence  of  actions 
at  law  ever  since.  The  first  case  of  the  kind  occurred  in  1853-6, 
when  legal  proceedings  were  taken  against  Archdeacon  Denison, 
on  account  of  his  published  statements  respecting  the  mode  of  the 
Presence  of  Christ  in  the  Eucharist.  In  the  event,  Archdeacon 
Denison  was  sentenced  to  be  deprived  of  his  benefices  ;  but  the  long 
discussion  of  the  case  compelled  a  more  perfect  study  of  the  Church's 
Sacramental  doctrines.  Following  this  case  was  that  of  Westerton 
v.  Liddell  respecting  alleged  ritual  at  St.  Paul's,  Knightsbridge, 
and  St.  Barnabas,  Pimlico.  It  was  taken  first  to  the  Consistory  Court 
of  London,  and  decided  against  Mr.  Liddell,  who  appealed  to  the 
Arches  Court  but  without  success.  He  then  appealed  to  the  Queen 
in  Council,  and  obtained  a  more  favourable  decision  ;  the  result  of 
which  was  that  Eitualism  was  greatly  encouraged.  The  expenses 
connected  with  these  lawsuits  were  very  great.  It  was  known  that 
the  prosecutors  in  these  cases  had  been  '  backed  up '  by  the  Evan- 
gelical Alliance  ;  and  therefore,  in  1859,  The  English  Church  Union 
was  founded  "mainly  to  defend  and  maintain  unimpaired  the 
Doctrine,  Discipline,  and  Eitual  of  the  Church  of  England  against 
Erastianism,  Eationalism  and  Puritanism  ;  and  to  afford  counsel  and 
protection  to  all  persons,  Lay  or  Clerical,  suffering  unjust  aggression 
or  hindrance  in  spiritual  matters."  '  Archdeacon  Denison  was  one 
of  its  promoters.  Some  '  Evangelicals '  met  this  new  organisation  by 
founding  the  Church  Association,  A.D.  1865,  in  order  "  to  counteract 
the  efforts  now  being  made  to  pervert  the  teaching  of  the 
Church  of  England  on  essential  points  of  the  Christian  faith,  or 
assimilate  her  services  to  those  of  the  Church  of  Rome  ;  and  to 

j  From  the  English  Church  Union  Directory,  1888. 


EXGLJSH  CHURCH  HISTORY.  245 

effect  these  objects  by  publicity  through  Lectures,  Meetings,  and  the 
use  of  the  Press  ;  by  appeals  to  the  Courts  of  Law  to  ascertain  what 
the  law  is,  and  by  appeals  to  Parliament.1"  In  other  words,  two 
avowedly  partisan  societies  were  started,  the  one  to  resist  and  the 
other  to  promote  the  interference  of  the  law  in  the  case  of  alleged 
breaches  of  the  Reformation  Settlement.  The  prosecutions  were  pro- 
moted by  the  Church  Association,  and  the  E.C.U.  defended  the  ritual 
practices  which  their  opponents  considered  illegal  innovations.  The 
excitement  was  then  intense  throughout  the  land,  and  mob  riots  against 
the  surplice  were  frequent.  In  1867,  but  without  reference  to  Con- 
vocation, a  bill  was  introduced  to  the  House  of  Lords  by  the  Earl  of 
Shaftesbury,  '  to  regulate  the  worship  of  the  Church  of  England.' 
This  was  a  distinct  violation  of  Church  privileges,  but  happily  the 
bill  was  negatived.  A  Royal  Commission  consisting  of  14  clergy  and 
15  laymen  was  then  appointed  at  the  suggestion  of  Mr.  Gladstone  to 
Consider  the  rubrics  and  their  proper  interpretation.  It  made  several 
reports,  two  of  which  suggested  speedy  and  inexpensive  remedies  for 
such  parishioners  as  were  aggrieved  by  ritual  innovations.  Several 
Ritual  prosecutions  had  been  in  progress  during  the  deliberations  of 
the  Ritual  Commission.  In  1867-8  the  Revs.  Mackonochie  and  Simpson 
were  prosecuted  in  the  Provincial  Court  of  Arches,  under  the  Church 
Discipline  Act  (which  had  been  passed  in  1840  to  facilitate  the  hear- 
ing of  complaints  against  the  Clergy)  and  Sir  R.  Phillimore  delivered 
judgment  in  their  favour.  The  promoters  of  the  suits  appealed  to 
the  Judicial  Committee  of  the  Privy  Council,  and  obtained  a  rever- 
sal of  the  judgment.  But  the  decision  of  that  Committee  on  a  matter 
involving  doctrine  and  ritual  was  not  thought  binding  by  the 
•clergy  most  concerned,  and  the  practices  continued.  In  1869  the 
celebrated  Purchas  case  was  before  the  Arches  Court ;  and  the  learned 
judge  decided  that  the  judgment  of  the  Queen  in  Council  in  re 
Westerton  r.  Liddell  held  good,  and  that  the  ornaments  of  the 
•churches  and  vestments  of  the  clergy  mentioned  in  the  first  Prayer- 
book  of  Edward  VI.  were  allowable.  This  judgment  also  was  brought 
before  the  Judicial  Committee  of  the  Privy  Council  on  appeal  and 
reversed  ;  but  as  before  the  decisions  of  the  latter  Court  were  openly 
•disregarded.  In  1874,  and  in  the  teeth  of  a  protest  made  in  the 
Lower  House  of  Canterbury  Convocation,  a  Public  Worship  Ruge- 
lation  Act  was  passed  in  Parliament,  by  which  a  layman  was  made 
the  Official  Principal  of  a  new  Arches  Court  instead  of  the  jugdes 
who  had  hitherto  been  appointed  by  the  Archbishops  of  Canterbury 
and  York  in  their  provincial  Courts  of  Arches.  After  this  Act  was 
passed  (March  1,  1875)  the  Bishops  issued  a  joint  Pastoral  against 
•"  the  refusal  to  obey  legitimate  authority  "  and  <;  the  dissemination  of 
•doctrines  and  encouragement  of  practices  repugnant  to  the  teaching 
•of  Holy  Writ  and  to  the  principles  of  the  Church  as  derived  from 

1  From  the  Church  Association  Tracts,  1888. 


2J6 


ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 


Apostolic  times,  and  as  authoritatively  set  forth  at  the  Reformation." 
In  1875-6  the  new  Court  had  before  it  the  case  of  Cliff  <»iv.  flidadale, 
in  which  the  new  judge  decided  against  the  defendant  clergyman. 
On  the  latter's  appeal  to  the  Final  Court  some  modifications  were 
made  in  the  decrees  of  the  Court  of  Arches,  but  by  no  means  to  the 
satisfaction  of  Ritualists.  There  has  ever  since  been  a  bitter  anta- 
gonism on  their  part  against  lay  interference  in  clerical  offences, 
und  it  is  well  known  that  several  clergymen  have  preferred  to  go  to 
prison  rather  than  admit  the  jurisdiction  of  the  new  Court.  The 
Reports  of  the  Royal  Commission  referred  to  on  the  previous  page, 
which  were  intended  to  meet  the  difficulties  felt  in  reference  to  eccle- 
siastical suits,  have  not  found  favour  with  either  class  of  disputants  ; 
nor  have  they  yet  been  made  the  subject  of  further  legislation. 


THE  NEW  LAW  COURTS,  LONDON. 

11.  The  Revival  of  Convocation.— Before  the  strictly  Ritual 
prosecutions  were  commenced  difficulties  had  arisen  in  connection  with 
the  Sacrament  of  Holy  Baptism.  In  1849  the  Rev.  G.  C.  Gorham  was 
refused  institution  to  a  benefice  by  Dr.  Philpotts,  bishop  of  Exeter,  on 
the  ground  that  he  held  unorthodox  opinions  respecting  the  doctrine 
of  Baptismal  Regeneration.  The  clergyman  proceeded  against  the 
bishop  in  the  old  Court  of  Arches,  but  lost  his  cause.  He  then 
appealed  to  Her  Majesty  in  Council,  where  a  number  of  lay  judges 
decided  in  his  favour,  after  consultation  with  several  prelates  who  were 
also  members  of  the  Privy  Council.  The  bishop  recorded  a  solemn 
protest  against  this  decision,  and  endeavoured  to  revive  Convocation 
as  the  true  court  of  appeal.  Failing  in  this  he  called  a  Synod  of  the 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  247 

clergy  of  his  own  diocese  (1851)  ;  and  the  discussions  that  ensued 
therein  not  only  made  the  doctrine  of  the  Church  of  England  more 
clear,  but  proved  the  necessity  and  advantage  of  reviving  the 
synodical  action  of  the  Church.  A  movement  for  its  revival  had 
been  on  foot  for  some  time.  After  the  General  Election  of  1847.  when 
Convocation  had,  as  usual,  been  elected,  the  Lower  House  of  the 
Canterbury  province  took  the  very  unusual  step  of  discussing  amend- 
ments to  the  loyal  address  in  reply  to  the  Queen's  message  by  which 
it  had  been  called  together.  This  ended  in  a  petition  to  Her 
Majesty  that  the  advice  of  the  Church's  ancient  synod  should  be 
sought  and  taken  by  the  Crown.  All  other  religious  bodies  were 
allowed  to  have  their  deliberative  assemblies ;  and  in  the  midst  of 
this  general  freedom  the  Church  of  England  alone  was  unable  to 
make  its  voice  heard.  A  '  Society  for  the  Revival  of  Convocation  ' 
was  next  started  (1850),  which  made  it  its  business  to  explain 
throughout  the  country.  l>y  public  meetings  and  pamphlets,  the 
historical  right  of  the  Church  to  its  representative  svnodiral  action. 
There  was  an  important  debate  in  the  House  of  Lords  in  1851,  which 
greatly  advanced  the  cause;  and  at  last  it  was  found  that,  although 
Convocation  had  only  been  a  name  for  over  130  years,  there  was 
really  no  legal  hindrance  to  its  discussion  of  any  ecclesiastical 
question  ;  although  it  could  not  issue  any  new  canons  or  constitutions 
without  the  concurrence  of  the  civil  legislature  and  the  assent  of  the 
Crown.  The  general  election  of  1852  was  of  course  accompanied  by 
a  general  election  of  proctors  for  Convocation,  and  those  who  were 
chosen  to  represent  the  province  of  Canterbury  met  in  St.  Paul's 
Cathedral,  Nov.  5,  1852.  One  of  its  earliest  acts  was  to  make  an 
energetic  protest  against  the  new  papal  hierarchy,  in  which  it  placed 
on  record  the  historical  position  of  our  National  Church,  by  designat- 
ing the  new  departure  as  •  That  fresh  aggression  of  the  Bishop  of 
Rome,  by  which  he  has  arrogated  to  himself  the  spiritual  charge  of 
this  nation,  thereby  denying  the  existence  of  that  branch  of  the 
Church  Catholic  which  was  planted  in  Britain  in  the  primitive  ages 
of  Christianity,  and  has  been  preserved  by  a  merciful  Providence 
unto  this  day.'  Although  it  took  Convocation  some  little  time  to 
find  its  way  along  forgotten  paths  and  resume  its  natural  voice,  the 
history  of  Convocation  since  its  revival  will  furnish  material  for 
much  encouragement  to  Churchmen.  Our  limited  space  forbids  us 
to  enumerate  or  discuss  much  that  it  has  done  ;  but  one  or  two  of  its 
most  important  struggles  on  behalf  of  Church  Doctrine  and  disci- 
pline maybe  mentioned.  In  1860  a  remarkable  collection  of  articles 
were  published  under  the  title  of  E$*ay*  and  Ji'tricu.:*,  most  of 
which  were  written  by  clergy  ;  and  all  of  which  attacked  some 
point  of  Christian  Lelief.  They  attracted  a  great  amount  of  atten- 
tion and  petitions  were  showered  upon  Convocation  against  their 
sceptical  character.  Over  8,000  clergy  signed  a  form  al  pjoteet  agairpt 
the  articles  and  Convocation  formally  condemned  them.  (A.D.  1864.) 


248  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

About  the  same  time  Dr.  Colenso,  the  bishop  of  Natal,  had  thrown 
much  doubt  upon  portions  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  by  commentaries 
which  he  had  written,  for  which  he  had  been  condemned  by  the 
Episcopal  Synod  of  South  Africa  and  deprived  of  his  bishopric. 
Convocation  warmly  thanked  the  South  African  Synod  for  the 
noble  stand  that  it  had  made  (the  English  bishops  and  proctors  of 
Convocation  had  censured  the  writings  long  before)  ;  and  when  Dr. 
Colenso  persisted  in  claiming  to  exercise  the  episcopal  office,  and 
was  formally  excommunicated  by  the  Synod  of  Cape  Town,  the 
English  Convocation  upheld  its  vigorous  and  unflinching  zeal.1 

It  would  not  be  right  to  pass  over  without  mention  the  further 
development  of  the  Church's  united  action  outside  of  Convocation. 
In  1861  a  valuable  movement  was  set  on  foot  at  Cambridge  by  which 
clergy  and  laity  might  meet  together  to  discuss  Church  matters 
publicly  and  freely.  It  was  called  a  Church  Congress;  and  the 
attempt  was  so  successful  that  it  has  been  repeated  every  year  until 
now,  and  has  assumed  remarkable  proportions.  The  chief  originator 
of  these  annual  gatherings  was  Archdeacon  Emery,  who  has^  ever 
since  taken  a  foremost  part  in  all  movements  for  uniting  the  clergy 
and  laity.  In  1863,  he  suggested  to  Convocation  that  each  diocese 
should  hold  an  annual  Synod  or  Conference,  representative  of  clergy 
and  laity.  The  first  synod  of  this  character  was  held  in  the  diocese 
of  Ely  (A.D.  1864)  ;  and  now  the  growth  and  spread  of  these 
Diocesan  Conferences  is  on  all  hands  acknowledged  to  have  been  a 
most  valuable  adjunct  to  the  work  of  the  English  Church.  The 
latest  development  of  the  modern  movement  to  revive  the  ancient 
practice  of  admitting  the  faithful  laity  to  a  share  in  the  delibera- 
tions of  the  Chuich  of  England  is  to  be  found  in  the  House  of 
Laymen  ;  which  came  into  being  by  resolution  of  Convocation,  July 
1885,  and  held  its  first  session  at  the  National  Society's  rooms,  Feb. 
16,  1886.  It  is  tj  hold  its  sessions  during  the  time  that  Convocation 
is  sitting  ;  to  be  convened  by  the  primate  only  ;  and  be  a  consulta- 
tive body  with  the  cleigy  in  Convocation  on  all  subjects  save  the 
definition  or  interpretation  of  the  faith  and  doctrine  of  the  Church. 
It  is  anticipated  that  much  good  will  result  to  the  Church  of  England 
from  this  addition  to  her  councillors.  It  is  now  in  contemplation  to 
provide  a  suitable  place  for  the  deliberation  of  these  assemblies,  to 
be  called  The  Church  House.  It  is  also  intended  to  be  a  lasting 
memorial  of  the  progress  made  in  Church  work  during  the  beneficent 
reign  of  Queen  Victoria  ;  and  will  afford  accommodation  for  many 
other  auxiliary  agencies,  and  recognised  Church  Societies,  whiJi 
have  made  modern  Church  enterprise  possible. 

1  A  lengthy  account  of  the  good  work  done  by  Convocation  since  its  revival  will 
be  found  in  Canon  Perry's  Students'  Church  History,  Vol.  HI.,  John  Murray,  7e.6d. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY. 


249 


CHAPTER     XXIX.     (A.D.  1811-1888). 
MODERN  CHURCH  WORK. 

"The  time 

Is  conscious  of  her  want ;  through  England's  bounds 
In  rival  ha^te,  the  wished-for  Temples  rise ! 
I  hear  their  Sabbath  bells'  harmonious  chimes 
Float  on  the  breeze — the  heaveuliett  of  all  sounds 
That  hill  or  vale  prolongs  or  multiplies." — Wordsworth. 

1.  Missionary  Enterprise.— In  a  list  of  "  Missionary  enter- 
prises to  the  Non-Christian  world  " — published  in  the  Record  news- 
paper (June  8,  1888),  it  appears  that  Greater  Britain  supports  113 
mission* — while  all  the  rest  of  the  Christian  world  put  together  can 
only  support  110.  Of  this  latter  number  the  United  States  are 
credited  with  56.  so  that  English  races  support  169  out  of  223 
missions.  Of  the  remainder.  Denmark  and  Russia  contribute  two 
each,  while  France  is  represented  by  a  solitary  mission  to  S.  Africa. 
The  169  'English'  missions  are  supported  by  many  different 
'denominations,'  but  the  avowedly  Episcopalian  are  the  most 
important,  most  influential,  most  extensive,  and  most  numerous. 
The  Church  of  England  has  led  the  van  in  missionary  enterprises  all 


BISHOP  PATTESON'S  HOUSE  AND  CHAPEL, 


250  ILL  USTRA  TED  NO  TES  ON 

along,  and  has  done  most  to  create  for  our  country  the  paramount 
position  indicated  by  these  figures.  We  have  already  referred  to  the 
beginnings  of  her  two  great  missionary  societies,  and  in  the  con- 
cluding chapter  we  shall  deal  with  the  growth  of  the  missionary 
episcopate.  The  life  of  an  evangelist  to  the  heathen  is  one  of  hard- 
ship, suffering,  and  not  seldom  of  death  ;  as  the  records  of  the 
societies  which  send  them  forth  abundantly  testify.  Two  modern 
instances  of  noble  self-sacrifice  in  the  mission  field  must  serve  as 
examples.  In  1841,  George  Selwyn  was  consecrated  to  be  the  bishop 
of  New  Zealand.  Just  before  he  left  England  to  look  after  that 
distant  country  he  preached  at  New  Windsor  on  the  blessedness  of 
missionary  work.  His  sermon  made  a  great  impression  on  a  young 
Eton  boy,  John  Cule-ridge,  Patte&on,  who  then  began  to  desire  such  a 
life  of  earnest  devotion  in  the  cause  of  Christ.  When  Bishop  Selwyn 
came  back  for  money  and  men  n  1854  that  Eton  boy  had  become 
a  clergyman  ;  and  the  next  year  he  accompanied  the  bishop  to  the 
far-off  islands  of  the  Pacific,  and  worked  among  the  Maories  in 
Melanesia  ;  visiting  the  islands  in  a  little  ship  called  '  The  Southern 
Cross.'  In  1861  he  was  consecrated  to  be  the  bishop  over  the  missions 
he  had  helped  to  found,  and  for  ten  years  he  worked  with  such 
noble  devotion  that  '  his  praise  was  in  all  the  Churches.'  Our  illus- 
tration shows  his  primitive  Melancsian  home  for  which  he  had  given 
up  luxury  in  England.  But  an  abominable  trade  in  coolie  labour 
for  the  Queensland  plantations  had  created  distrust  of  white  men 
among  the  inhabitants  of  one  of  the  islands,  and  as  the  Southern 
Cross  was  the  first  vessel  to  call  there  after  a  party  of  traders  had 
kidnapped  five  of  the  islanders,  the  tribe  took  a  terrible  revenge  by 
murdering  Bishop  Patteson  as  soon  as  he  had  landed,  and  mortally 
wounding  two  of  his  companions.  The  natives  wrapped  the  Bishop's 
body  in  a  mat,  into  the  folds  of  which  they  thrust  a  palm  branch 
with  five  knots  tied  in  it,  to  signify  that  the  deed  was  an  avenge- 
ment  of  their  five  stolen  friends.  They  then  put  the  body  in  a 
canoe  and  let  it  drift  out  to  sea,  whence  it  was  picked  up  by  the 
ship's  boat.  In  Australia  and  England  the  tidings  of  his  death  were 
received  with  an  emotion  that  is  rarely  witnessed.  '  The  Queen's 
Speech  at  the  opening  of  Parliament  in  1872  alluded  to  the  tragic 
end  of  so  noble  a  life.'  The  S.P.G.  raised  worthy  memorials  to  his 
life  and  death  by  building  a  church  on  Norfolk  Island  and  a  new 
mission  ship.  The  second  example  of  a  modern  bishop  whose  life 
was  sacrificed  by  barbarians,  is  that  of  James  Ifannington,  who 
went  to  Eastern  Equatorial  Africa,  under  the  auspices  of  the  C.M.S. 
in  1882  ;  and  was  consecrated  bishop  at  the  instance  of  that  society 
in  18!-5  ;  a  mission  ship  being  built  to  cruise  on  Lake  Nyanza.  In 
October  of  that  same  year  he  made  an  attempt  to  open  up  a  short 
route  to  Buganda,  where  a  mission  station  had  been  planted  through 
the  instrumentality  of  the  great  explorer.  Mr.  11.  M.  Stanley  ;  but 
when  within  four  days'  journey  of  his  destination  his  caravan  was 


ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY. 


251 


seized  iijion  by  the  Masai  tribes  at  Busoga,  and  detained  until  King 
Mw.inea  should  send  word  from  Buganda  as  to  whether  they  might 
go  forward.  Mwanga's  reply  was  that  they  should  be  killed  :  ai.d 
accordingly  the  whole  party"  were  put  to  death,  save  three  native 
servants  who  escaped  to  tell  the  tale.  Bishop  Hannington's  la-t 
words  were:  "Tell  the  king  I  am  about  to  die  for  the  Bugauda, 
and  have  purchased  the  road  to  them  with  my  life."  Two  years  later, 
the  news  arrived  that  the  king  Mwanga  had  been  baptised,  and 
Buganda  is  now  a  Christian  state.  Bishop  Hannington's  episcopate 
was  too  short  for  great  achievements,  but  the  way  he  opened  up,  ai:-l 
the  mission  stations  he  planted  on  the  route,  complete  a  circle  of 
Christian  outposts  in  'The  Dark  Continent.'  which  will  hereafier 
subdue  its  savage  inhabitants  to  the  peace  of  God. 

2.  The  Church  Revival. 
— One  of  the  early  Colonial 
bishops  was  Reginald  Heber. 
who  became  second  bishop 
of  Calcutta  in  1823.  Before 
then  he  had  been  rector  of 
Hodnet,  in  Shropshire.  He 
is,  however,  best  known  as  a 
great  Christian  poet,  and 
there  is  this  difference  be- 
tween his  writings  and  those 
of  the  18th  century  poets : 
that  whereas  they  entirely 
ignored  the  systematic  group- 
ing of  Christian  doctrines 
which  the  Church  provides 
in  the  orderly  arrangement 
of  seasons  of  fa-ting  a;;d 
rejoicing ;  he  followed  in  the 
steps  of  George  Herbert  by 
showing,  that  there  is  real 
beauty  and  harmony  in  the 
course  laid  out  for  us  by  the 
early  Christian  Father- 
that  rightly  sings  his  grand 
hymnforSt.  Stephen's  Day: — ' 

1  The  Son  of  God  goes  forth  to  War ' 

can  help  being  moved  to  do  something  for  the  cause  of  our  Redeemer. 
And  when  we  chant  his  Epiphany  carol : — 

'  liriglitest  anil  best  of  the  sons  of  the  morning,' 
how  can  we  help  being  awed  at  tho  wondrous  condescension  of  the 


BISHOP   IIEBKK. 


252  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

Lord  of  Glory?  Again,  are  not  our  hearts  filled  with  adoring  love 
when  at  Holy  Communion  we  sing  : — 

'  Bread  of  the  world  in  mercy  broken '  ? 

And  who  can  estimate  the  good  that  has  been  dene  for  the  heathen, 
or  count  the  myriads  who  have  been  led  to  think  of  them,  by  his 
simple  strains  first  sung  in  Wrexham  Church  : — 

'  From  Greenland's  icy  mountains '  ? 

It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  the  publication  of  Reginald  Heber's 
hymns  inspired  John  Keble  to  write   the  '  Christian  Year ; '    than 
which,  perhaps,  no  book  has  done  more  to  make  men  and  women  love 
the  English  Liturgy  and  to  see  that,  by  the  wisdom  of  the  Fathers, 
"  The  way  before  us  lies 

Distinct  with  signs — through  which,  in  fixed  career 

As  through  a  Zodiac,  moves  the  ritual  year 

Of  England's  Church." 

From  the  time  the  '  Christian  Year '  was  published  (A.D.  1827)  we 
are  able  to  trace  a  gradual  return  to  a  reverence  for  ecclesiastical 
order  and  the  Customs  of  the  primitive  Church  which,  since  the 
Commonwealth,  had  fallen  into  decay.  Mr.  Keble  was  in  the  fore- 
front of  this  new  revival,  and  from  his  position  as  Professor  of  Poetry, 
he  was  an  accepted  leader  among  the  knot  of  Fellows  and  students  of 
the  University  of  Oxford  who  concurred  in  the  necessity  of  impress- 
ing on  people  that  the  Church  was  more  than  a  merely  human  insti- 
tution ;  that  it  had  privileges,  sacraments,  and  a  ministry  ordained 
by  Christ ;  that  it  was  a  matter  of  the  highest  obligation,  not  only  to 
remain  united  to  the  Church,  but  also  to  use  her  formularies  loyally. 
There  were  grave  reasons  why  that  '  Association  of  Friends  of  the 
Church,'  was  greatly  needed.  The  repeal  of  the  Test  Acts  (1828),  by 
which  other  than  communicant  members  of  the  National  Church 
were  eligible  for  State  offices  ;  and  the  removal  of  Roman  Catholic 
disabilities  (1829)  ;  together  with  the  enquiries  made  (at  the  instance 
of  the  Parliament  returned  on  the  first  Reform  Bill)  respecting  the 
unequal  distribution  of  Church  property,  that  led  to  the  formation 
of  the  Ecclesiastical  Commission  (1836)  ;  made  Churchmen  anxious 
for  such  privileges  as  were  left  to  them  :  especially  the  Liturgy, 
which  was  being  attacked  by  the  Church's  own  children  with  a  view 
to  drastic  changes.  The  leaders  of  the  Oxford  movement  drew  up 
memorials,  which  were  signed  by  thousands  of  clergy  and  hundreds 
of  thousands  of  heads  of  families,  to  the  primate  and  the  king,  so  that 
the  country  was  able  to  see  how  much  our  formularies  were  loved. 
The  actual  originator  of  the  movement  was  Hugh  James  Rose, 
and  the  centre  of  it  was  at  Oriel  College,  to  which,  from  all 
parts  of  the  country,  Churchmen  went  to  enquire  as  of  an  oracle. 
The  Oxford  friends  tried  to  stimulate  the  good  feeling  thus  aroused 
by  the  circulation  of  cheap  literature  on  Church  matters,  called  '  Tracts 
for  the  Times ';  which  occasionally  defeated  the  ends  aimed  at  by  their 


ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY, 


253 


sadden  boldness,  and  not  seldom  by  their  exaggerated  language  and 
mediaeval  sentiments.  The  Church  was  startled  by  this  recall  to 
principles  which  had  been  neg- 
lected for  two  hundred  years, 
and  endeavoured  to  silence  the 
'  Tractarians '  by  condemning 
some  of  their  writings  and  pul- 
pit utterances.  Certain  leaders 
were  suspended,  but  the  move- 
ment went  on.  This  is  not  the 
place,  even  if  there  were  room, 
to  discuss  the  pros  and  cons  of 
the  revival  teaching.  Ashasbeen 
the  case  all  through  these  pages. 
opinions  are  only  mentioned 
to  show  the  lasting  effects  they 
produced.  The  good  commenced 
by  such  men  as  H.  J.  Rose, 
W.  F.  Percival.  Edward  Puseyi 
William  Palmer.  Isaac  Williams, 
and  John  Keble,  has  been  felt 
chiefly  in  the  greater  attention 
since  paid  by  all  schools  of 

thought   to    fundamentals    of  THE  REV.  JOHN*  KEBLE. 

faith  and  practice  ;  but  it  is  right  to  state  that  several  of  their  com- 
panions were  led  to  seek  a  more  congenial  sphere,  beyond  the  bonier- 
lines  of  our  Church.  Among  these  may  be  mentioned  Edward 
Manning,  and  John  Henry  Xewinan,  who  seceded  to  the  Church  of 
Rome  in  1845,  and  were  afterwards  made  Cardinals.  Their  example 
induced  a  great  many  ladies  and  gentlemen  to  take  a  similar  step. 
While  the  secessions  were  going  on  Romanists  were  in  great  delight, 
and  fondly  hoped  that  England  would  soon  be  brought  into  obedience 
to  the  papacy.  Many  Englishmen  on  the  other  hand  expected  that 
the  secessions  would  put  an  end  to  the  Oxford  movement.  Neither 
hope  was  realised.  Mr.  Keble,  Dr.  Pusey,  and  other  leaders  proved 
their  honest  intent  by  strict  fidelity  to  the  Church  of  their  fathers  ; 
and  lived  to  gain  respect  even  from  some  of  their  opponents.  And 
there  can  be  no  doubt  whatever  that  the  movement  they  fostered, 
with  all  its  defects,  compelled  greater  reverence  for  Apostolic  doc- 
trine and  fellowship,  and  did  more  than  anything  else  to  bring  the 
Church  of  England  into  its  present  high  state  of  efficiency  and 
usefulness.  The  Tractarians  were  the  extreme  wing  of  the  modern 
"High  Church"  party.  Between  them  and  the  "Low  Church" 
party  were  a  vast  body  of  many  moderate  men.  of  whom  Dr.  Chris- 
topher Wurdsivorth,  bishop  of  Lincoln,  and  Dean  Hook,  whose  name 
is  still  a  household  word  in  the  great  town  of  Leeds,  where  he  had 
been  vicar,  were  worthy  examples. 


2  ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  OA 

3.  Religious  Education  of  the  Young.— Although  their 
foundation  dates  from  the  middle  of  the  Georgian  era,  we  have 
refrained  from  mentioning  the  good  work  done  by  Sunday  Schools 
until  now,  because  their  continuance  and  development  occupies  a 
foremost  place  in  '  Modern  Church  Work.'  They  came  into  general 
notice  about  1781,  chiefly  through  the  combined  instrumentality  of 
Mr.  Raikes,  a  worthy  tradesman  of  Gloucester,  and  Mr.  Stock,  one 
of  the  clergy  of  that  city.  Not  very  long  after  they  obtained  the 
approval  of  Dr.  Porteus,  the  bishop  of  London.  Like  all  new 
movements,  Sunday-schools  met  with  a  measure  of  opposition  at  the 
first ;  and  it  must  be  admitted  that,  if  proper  advantage  had  been 
taken  of  the  Church's  provision  for  catechising  the  young,  they 
would  not  have  been  so  much  needed  ;  but  the  apathy  and  neglect 
which  had  overspread  Church  work  during  the  18th  century  was  felt 
by  the  children  most  of  all.  But  when  the  19th  century  dawned 
Sunday-schools  became  acknowledged  as  an  indispensable  adjunct  of 
Church  work,  with  the  cordial  approval  of  the  S.P.C.K.,  which  had 
always  been  anxious  for  the  religious  training  of  the  young.  At  the 
present  time  it  would  be  impossible  to  calculate  the  good  that  they 
are  doing.  A  recent  '  Royal  Commission  on  Elementary  Education,' 
the  report  of  which  was  published  in  August,  1888,  received 
evidence  on  the  subject  from  the  official  representatives  of  three 
Sunday-school  associations,  from  which  we  learn  that  the  number 
of  scholars  on  the  rolls  of  the  Sunday-schools  in  England  and  Wales 
was  then  5,200,000  of  all  denominations.  But  of  this  number  over 
a  million  were  infants  under  seven  years  of  age  ;  and  in  many  cases, 
especially  in  Wales  and  among  the  Society  of  Friends,  the  Sunday- 
schools  are  largely  attended  by  adults.  There  seems  to  be  no  informa- 
tion available  as  to  the  number  of  children  cared  for  by  Romanists 
on  Sundays  ;  but  it  was  estimated  that  the  numbers  of  scholars  in 
Church  and  Dissenting  Sunday-schools  in  the  year  1888,  between  the 
ages  of  seven  and  fourteen,  in  England  and  Wales,  were  as  follows  : — 

Church  of  England 1,540,000 

Wesleyan  and  Methodist        445,500 

In  connection  with  the  Sunday  School  Union   ...       587,500 
Other  '  Protestant '  Denominations      600,000 

Total  No.  of  Scholars  between  7  and  14      3.173,000 

It  is  surely  not  too  much  to  say  that  the  instruction  these  myriads  of 
children  receive  in  the  elements  of  Christian  belief  does  immense 
good  to  the  country  at  large,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  the 
majority  of  their  Sunday-school  teachers  have  had  no  special  training 
for  their  office.  In  1888  there  were  224,750  teachers  in  the  Church 
of  England  Sunday-schools  ;  and  the  scholars  of  all  ages  under  their 
care  numbered  no  less  than  2,555, 399. 1 

1  These  figures  are  taken  from  Mr.  Palmer's  Manu  il  OD  the  History  of  Sunday 
Scfoofc,  published  by  thr>  Sunday  School  Institute,  j  erji'iint's  Inn,  E,C. 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  255 

Even  more  important  than  the  Sunday-schools  is  the  ftork  done 
by  the  Elementary  Day-schools  of  the  Church  of  England.  Reference 
was  made  on  page  200  to  the  charity  school  system  which  the  S.  P.C.K. 
had  organised  at  the  beginning  of  the  18th  century  ;  but  after  a 
hundred  years  of  useful  work  in  that  direction,  it  was  felt  that 
primary  education  of  the  young,  on  a  sound  religions  basis,  demanded 
that  a  separate  society  should  be  formed  to  take  in  hand  the  organi- 
sation of  parochial  Church  schools.  Up  to  that  time  the  government 
had  not  felt  any  responsibility  touching  the  instruction  of  youth  ; 
and  in  spite  of  what  the  S.  P.O. K.  ha  I  done,  together  with  the  private 
adventures  of  individuals,  nearly  two-thirds  of  the  children  of  poor 
parents  were  left  without  the  merest  rudiments  of  English  know- 
ledge, save  that  which  was  imparted  here  and  there  by  incompetent 
dames.  However,  in  1S11,  the  '  National  Society  for  Promoting 
the  Education  of  the  Poor  in  the  Principles  of  the  Established 
Charch  '  was  founded  ;  which  soon  extended  its  influence  over  the 
whole  kingdom,  until  there  was  hardly  a  parish  without  its  National 
School.  A  little  healthy  rivalry  amonz  the  few  beneficent  men  who 
were  interested  in  the  question  probably  hastened  the  formation  of 
trie  National  Society  ;  but  since  it  has  been  founded  no  one  has  been 
able  to  say  with  truth  that  Churchmen  have  not  the  cause  of  Ele- 
mentary Education  at  heart.  Until  the  reign  of  William  IV. 
voluntary  beneficence  was  the  only  means  by  which  instruction 
could  be  imparted  to  the  children  of  the  poor  ;  and  even  then 
what  the  State  did  was  infinitesimal.  In  1333  the  House  of 
Commons  was  persuaded  to  set  \  .000  a  year  for  elementary 

education  in  England.  In  183'.)  a  Committee  of  Council  was 
appointed  to  deal  specially  with  the  question,  and  administer 
the  government  grants ;  and  from  that  time  the  subsidies 
rapidly  increased.  The  Cl.urch  was  then  educating  eleven  children 
out  of  every  twelve  receiving  instruction,  and  successfully  resisted 
a  mean  attempt  on  the  part  of  the  Committee  of  Council  to  ignore 
distinctive  religious  training.  Until  1870  the  government  grants 
were  distributed  among  th._-  >len  >mi:i;U;  >  >;ii  schools,  but  i:i  that  year 
it  will  be  remembered  that  the  ;  Elementary  Education  Act '  was 
passed,  by  which  Parliament  separate  I  itself  fruai  all  concern  in 
definite  religious  instructions,  and  provided  for  the  establishment  of 
undenominational  schools  under  Local  Boards  ;  its  grants  being 
distributed  in  proportion  to  the  proficiency  of  each  child  in  the 
rudiments  of  secular  knowledge.  The  difference  between  the 
government  grants  and  the  gross  cost  of  maintenance  in  the 
Board-schools  has  to  be  provided  by  the  local  ratepayers, 
according  to  the  valuation  fixed  from  time  to  time  by  the  School 
Boards  they  have  elected.  But  the  difference  between  the 
government  grants  and  the  cost  of  maintenance  in  the  denomi- 
national schools,  has  to  be  supplied  by  the  voluntary  contributions  of 
their  friends:  who  have  also  had  to  pay  their  quota  to  the  School 


256 


ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 


Board  rate.  Voluntary  schools  therefore  are  heavily  handicapped  ; 
nevertheless,  so  great  is  the  acknowledgment  of  the  necessity  of 
definite  religious  instruction  that  voluntary  schools  continue  to 
flourish,  as  the  following  tables  demonstrate. 


Voluntary  Expenditure  on  Church  Schools  <$•  Training  Colleges. 

Object  of  Expenditure. 

1811-1870. 

1870-1890. 

Total. 

Building  Schools  

£ 

*6,270,577 
8,500,000 
194,085 
185,276 

£ 
6,845,512 
12,180,493 
83,310 
284,454 

£ 
13,116,089 
20,680,493 
277,395 
469,730 

Maintenance  of  Ditto    

Building  Training  Colleges 
Maintenance  of  Ditto  

Grand  Totals  

15,149,938 

19,393,769 

34,543,707 

*  These  figures  are  exclusive  of  the  value  of  sites,  which  are  often  free  gifts 
in  the  case  of  Voluntary  Schools.    This  would  increase  the  total  expenditure 
by  at  least  a  million  pounds. 

Elementary  Day  School  Statistics  for  the  year  ending  Aug.  31,  1890. 

Denomination. 

Accommo- 
dation. 

No.  on 
Registers. 

Average 
Attend- 
ances. 

Voluntary 
Contributions. 

Church  of  Eng.  ... 
British,  &c  
Wesleyan    

2,651,078 
416,253 
214,819 
341,953 
1,915,182 

2,168,229 
329,732 

174,773 
255,777 
1,875,638 

1,680,596 
254,873 
131.805 
193,285 
1,457,358 

£589,64014    1 
79,723    5    9 
17,253    1    5 
70,911  10    9 

Romanist    

Board  

Total   J 

5,539,285 

4,804,149 

3,717,917 

£757,52812    0 

From  such  figures,  which  are  published  annually  by  the  National  Society 
at  Westminster,  it  will  be  seen  that  although,  since  the  Education 
Act  of  1870,  the  Church  has  had  to  contend  against  the  unlimited 
exchequer  of  Board  schools,  she  has  been  able  to  hold  her  own  as  the 
teacher  of  the  poor  ;  for  her  schools,  the  accommodation  therein,  and 
the  average  attendance  are  nearly  equal  to  all  the  Board  schools, 
British  schools,  and  Sectarian  schools  combined.  In  some  counties 
the  Church  schools  have  an  overwhelming  preponderance, — e.g.,  in 
the  County  of  Essex,  in  1888,  there  were  under  separate  manage- 
ment 343  Church  schools,  23  British,  &c.,  11  Wesleyan,  11  Romanist 
and  123  Board  schools  ;  so  that  the  Church  of  England  has  made 
itself  responsible  for  about  two-thirds  of  all  the  elementary  day 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  257 

schools  in  that  county.  In  the  face  of  very  great  disadvantages  the 
results  obtained  in  Church  schools  equal,  and  often  exceed,  the 
Board  school  results  ;  and  at  much  less  cost  per  head.  To  which 
must  be  added  the  priceless  boon  of  definite  religious  teaching.  It  is 
therefore  a  matter  of  great  moment  that  Churchmen  should  maintain 
the  Church's  educational  work;  for,  as  a  report  of  the  National  Society 
declared,  "  without  religion,  though  it  may  be  possible  to  instruct,  it 
is  not  possible  thoroughly  to  educate  ;  and  for  religious  teaching  to 
be  effectual  it  must  be  definite  in  character.  When  children  are 
brought  up  in  schools  where  religious  teaching  is  vague  and  uncertain 
they  not  only  fail  to  receive  any  deep  impression  for  good,  but  are  in 
danger  of  acquiring  a  general  indifference  towards  religion." 

4.  Church.  Restoration. — The  most  remarkable  of  the  mar- 
vellous developments  of  modern  Church  work  is  the  decided  change 
for  the  better  in  the  general  aspect  of  our  parish  churches.  Most 
people  now  living  can  remember  the  dreary  and  dilapidated  churches, 
of  which  there  are  a  few  still  to  be  seen,  but  not  very  many.  The 
architectural  beauties  of  the  buildings  were  disfigured  by  the 
flimsiest  woodwork,  plaster,  and  paint.  Until  20  years  ago  all  this 
was  the  rule  rather  than  the  exception.  But  the  revived  attention 
to  Church  history  and  antiquities  has  wrought  a  wonderful  change  ; 
and  for  discomfort,  want  of  cleanliness,  and  objectionable  class  dis- 
tinctions, we  now  possess  equality,  uniformity,  decency  and  orderly 
arrangement  in  our  churches  ;  which  has  greatly  increased  that  spirit 
of  reverence  which  ought  never  to  be  absent  from  our  minds  when 
we  go  to  worship  God.  Our  two  comparative  illustrations  overleaf 
only  imperfectly  explain  the  different  appearances  worn  by  our 
churches  now,  because  they  are  not  the  most  telling  examples  that 
might  have  been  shown.  The  '  unrestored  chancel '  represents  the 
private  chapel  of  a  nobleman.  The  '  recently  restored  church  '  is  one 
of  the  City  of  London  churches  built  by  Sir  Christopher  Wren, 
which  once  had  quite  a  different  aspect.  The  pulpit  occupies  a  far 
less  prominent  position  than  it  used  to  do  ;  and  a  stranger  would  at 
once  see  that  it  is  not  so  much  a  place  where  people  come  '  to  hear 
.Mr.  So-and-so  preach,'  as  a  sauctuar_v  into  which  men  come  seeking 
rest  and  refreshment  from  One  who  is  no  respecter  of  persons.  Such 
a  transformation  has  taken  place  in  nearly  every  ancient  parish 
church  within  the  memory  of  many  now  living.  'More  than  eight 
thousand  '  temples  of  God's  grace ' — beautiful  for  situation,  the  joy 
of  countless  generations  in  every  part  of  the  land,  the  living  wit- 
nesses of  past  benevolence — have  been  made  to  rise  again  to  newer 
life  during  the  last  50  years.  Within  their  walls  for  many  centuries 
the  voice  of  prayer  and  praise  has  ascended  to  the  Throne  of  Grace 
from  innumerable  hearts.  Some  of  them  are  in  towns  and  cities 
where  the  hurry  and  ;bustle  of  life  cause  us  to  pass  them  by  with 
very  little  thought  or  care  (save  for  the  value  of  their  sites,  for  the 


258 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


best  and  most  ancient  will  generally  be  found  in  the  busiest  parts)  ; 
but  the  greater  number  are  in  out  of  the  way  villages,  surrounded 
by  equally  old  and  older  churchyards,  where  the  ancestry  of  the 
neighbourhood  and  relatives  of  the  parishioners  lie  buried,  who  once 
worshipped  therein.  Sometimes  new  churches  have  had  to  be 
built,  because  the  old  had  been  allowed  to  go  altogether  to  decay  ; 
but  the  stones  of  the  old  are  often  bound  up  in  the  new  buildings, 
the  religious  history  of  the  parishes ,  remaining,  while  the  love 

of  the  parishioners 
for  such  sanctuaries 
is  most  cordial.  Mod- 
ern adversaries  of 
the  Church  of  Eng- 
land desire  that 
all  these  ancient 
churches  (all,  in  fact, 
that  were  founded 
before  the  year  181 8) 
should  be  taken  out 
of  the  possession  of 
the  present  holders 
and  vested  in  Paro- 
chial Boards,  to  be 
elected  by  the  rate- 
payers,which  should 
have  power  to  use 
them  for  secular 
purposes,  and  even 
to  sell  them.  It  is 
not  difficult  to  im- 
agine that  some  par- 
ishes (where  there 
arc  a  majority  of 
Nonconformists,  or 
Jews,  or  foreign 
colonists)  would 
elect  representatives 
to  such  a  board  who 

AX  UNRESTORED  CHANCEL.  would  arbitrarily  use 

the  proposed  power  to  the  detriment  of  Church  interests.  It  is  unlikely 
that  such  a  proposition  would  be  generally  carried  out  ;  but  we 
know  what  pressure  has  been  put  upon  national  schools  in  certain 
parishes,  by  which  many  have  been  lost  to  the  Church.  We  must 
therefore  carefully  watch  every  new  proposal  of  the  enemy,  and 
provide  ourselves  with  defensive  armour.  Fortunately  there  is  latent 
in  the  breasts  of  most  Englishmen  a  mighty  horror  of  sacrilege.  In 
some  places  it  has  been  found  difficult  even  for  the  restorers  to  avoid 


ENGLISH    CHURCH  HISTORY. 


259 


opposition  to  schemes  of  restoration.      If  men  are  found  jealous  when 
loving  hands  propose  to  move  the  crumbling  stones  we  may  be  sure 
that  they  would  still  more  resent  the  sacrilegious  profanation  of 
Liberal  ion  ists.    Churchmen  in  every  part  of  England  cherish  similar 
feeling.      '  They  think  of   the  Cathedrals  and  their  glory  ;  of  the 
little  village    churches  and   their  sweetness  ;    of  the  bells  that — 
from  every  steeple,  tower,  and  turret — chime  o'er  hill  and  dale  ;  of 
the  means  of  grace  offered  within  these  sanctuaries  to  all  who  desire 
them,  no  matter  how  lowly  or  exalted  their  rank  ;  and  they  deter- 
mine   that  the   privileges    they  have   inherited  shall  not  be  lost. 
From   the  cradle  to   the  grave  they  and  theirs  have  been,  and  are 
being  ministered  to 
by   God's  appointed 
stewards ;  and  there- 
fore they  are  desirous 
that  in  the  days  that 
are     coming    there 
still     may    be     her 
blessiags   offered  to 
every  babe,  her  open 
gates    and    inviting 
altars,  her  benedic- 
tion for  every  bridal, 
her   visits    of    sym- 
pathy  and    instruc- 
tion for   every   sick 
room,  her  words  of 
hope  "for  every  grave, 
and  the  music  of  her 
Prayer-book  echoing 
near  each  one  of  us 
daily  and  nightly.' — 
(JKtkff  Alexander.) 
If  we  were  to  allow 
these  priceless  heri-  RECENTLY  RESTORED  CHURCH. 

tages — which  our  forefathers  built  and  handed  down  to  us  in  tru«t 
for  our  posterity— to  be  surrendered  to  irreligious  clamour,  how 
could  we  expect'to  retain  the  friendship  of  God  to  whose  glory  they 
have  been  erected  ?  What  would  the  world  say  of  us  if  we  gave  them 
up  ?  There  are  many  English  speaking  countries  which  would  give 
anything  they  now  enjoy  to  have  such  memorials  of  the  piety  of 
bygone  ages  as  we  possess.  They  even  claim  a  share  in  them  as  they 
are,  and  would  bitterly  reproach'us  if  we  took  no  care  of  them.  We 
should  become  a  by- word  among  our  kinsmen  in  other  lands  if  we 
were  to  stand  idly"  by,  and  make  no  effort  to  restrain  the  unbridled 
covetousuess  of  those  who  are  agitating  for  the  alienation  to  secular 
uses  of  our  old  parish  churches.  But  there  is  not  much  danger  that 


260  ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 

this  will  ever  be  allowed.  Our  statesmen  are  realising  that  any 
attempt  to  misuse,  or  destroy,  or  despoil  these  old  historic  places,  will 
cause  them  to  forfeit  the  confidence  of  Englishmen. 

5.  Increase  of  the  Clergy.1 — The  chief  difficulty  with  which 
the  Church  has  had  to  cope  in  modern  times  has  been  the  remark- 
ably rapid  increase  in  the  population  of  towns  and  cities.  '  They 
grow  at  a  rate  that  will  not  admit  of  the  slightest  relaxation  of 
effort  to  supply  its  spiritual  necessities  ;  nay,  that  demands  increased 
exertion."  The  only  way  of  meeting  the  need  was  by  adding  to  the 
number  of  churches  and  clergy.  And  this  has  been  done  in  two 
ways  :  by  abolishing  the  holding  of  more  than  one  benefice  by 
individual  clergymen,  except  in  special  cases  ;  and  by  providing 
assistant  clergy  to  help  the  incumbents  of  populous  parishes,  who 
are  generally  known  as  '  Curates.'2  "  Curates  there  were,  it  is  true, 
in  former  times  ;  but  they  were  merely  the  representatives  of  the 
incumbents,  who,  holding  two  or  more  benefices  together,  were  non- 
resident. So  extensively  did  this  state  of  things  prevail,  that  in  the 
year  1810,  from  Parliamentary  returns  of  the  10,159  livings  held  by 
incumbents,  more  than  half  of  the  parishes  were  supplied  by  curates- 
in-sole-charge.  After  the  passing  of  the  Pluralities  Act  this  state  of 
things  became  gradually  changed.  Hence,  in  1838  some  3,078  curates- 
in-charge  acted  for  non-resident  incumbents  ;  in  1864  only  955  so 
acted  ;  in  1890  only  228.  The  ability  to  provide  for  these  additional 
clergy  and  their  helpers  comes  mainly  from  two  societies : — The 
Church  Pastoral  Aid  Society,  which  was  founded  February  19th,  1836; 
and  the  Additional  Curates'  Society  which  came  into  being  the  follow- 
ing year.  In  1831  there  were  13,994,460  persons  in  England  and 
Wales.  In  1881  there  were  26,117,886.  But  as  in  1831  there  were 
980,750  agricultural  labourers  in  the  country,  and  only  870,798  in 
1881,  it  follows  that  the  labouring  classes  must  have  migrated  to  the 
urban  districts  ;  so  that,  although  the  spiritual  necessities  of  rural 
neighbourhoods  might  be  met  by  compelling  the  residence  of  incum- 
bents, the  vast  masses  of  the  people  in  towns  could  only  be  reached 
by  employing"  more  clergy.  The  following  comparison  will  show 
what  efforts  have  been  made  in  this  direction. 

1836.  1890. 

No.  of  benefices  in  England  and  Wales 10,657  14,116 

No.  of  beneficed  clergy        8,147  13,747 

No.  of  curates  employed  by  resident  incumbents      1,006  6,457 

No.of  curates  employed  by  woft-rmrfenf  incumbents      4,224  228 

Average  annual  stipend  of  assistant  clergy        ...          £81  £140? 

1  These  particulars  have  been  gathered  from  Reports  of  the  Church  Pastoral  Aid 
Society,  the  Additional  Curates'  Society,  and  the  Official  Year  Books  of  the  Church 
of  England,  published  annually  by  S.P.C.K. 

2  According  to  the  Prayer-book,  Incumbents  are  the  '  Curates,'  for  they  have  the 
'  cure'  or  care  of  souls.    The  application  of  the  term  to  assistant  clergy  is  modern. 


ENGLISH    CHLRCH   HISTORY. 


261 


About  750  clergy  are  now  ordained  every  year.  Up  to  1816  the 
Universities  were  the  only  sources  from  which  clergy  could  be 
drawn ;  but  in  that  year  a  Theological  College  was  founded  at  St. 
Bees,  Cumberland,  for  the  exclusive  training  of  candidates  for  Holy 
Orders,  who  for  various  reasons  were  unable  to  go  to  Oxford  or 
Cambridge,  and  this  foundation  has  sent  out  a  very  large  number 
of  clergy,  chiefly  into  the  poorer  districts,  as  Home  Missionaries.  In 
1831  King's  College,  London,  was  opened  for  instruction  in  Church 
of  England  doctrines  and  duties,  combined  with  other  branches  of 
useful  education  ;  as  a  set  off  to  the  purely  secular  London 
University  which  had  been  founded  just  before  ;  and  this  also  has 
furnished  a  goodly  number  of  clergy.  In  1832  the  University  of 
Durham  was  founded,  with  a  theological  department,  for  the  sake  of 

men  who,  though  unable 
to  avail  themselves  of 
the  older  Universities, 
were  willing  to  qualify 
for  degrees.  The  success 
of  St.  Bees'  College 
during  a  quarter  of  a 
century  prompted  the 
revival  of  Theological 
seminaries  in  connexion 
with  some  of  the  cathe- 
dral foundations.  Hence 
'Chichester  in  1839— fol- 
lowed by  Wells.  Lich- 
field,  Salisbury.  Glouces- 
ter, Lincoln,  Ely,  and 
Truro.  in  the  order  named — established  training  homes  for  clergy  ; 
chiefly  to  provide  more  definite  and  special  theological  training  than 
a  university  course  supplies.  There  are  several  other  theological 
colleges,  founded  to  perpetuate  distinct  schools  of  thought,  such  as 
Birkenhead,  Cuddesdon,  Highbury,  Wycliffe  Hall  at  Oxford  and 
Ridley  Hall  in  Cambridge.  During  the  last  19  years,  i.e.  1872-1891, 
there  have  been  14.204  new  clergy  ordained  for  England  and  Wales  ; 
and  they  have  been  drawn  from  the  following  educational  centres  : — 
Cambridge,  4.324:  Oxford.  4.142;  Theological  Colleges.  3,706; 
Durham.  823  :  Dublin.  571  ;  besides  which  636  have  been  ordained  as 
'  Literates.'  who  satisfied  the  bishops  examining  chaplains  as  to  their 
intellectual  attainments  without  attending  any  special  training 
institution.  There  are  also  several  colleges  for  training  foreign 
missionaries,  such  as  the  C.M.S.  College  at  Islington.  St.  Augustine's 
at  Canterbury  (see  vol.  I,  p.  57),  and  some  smaller  institutions. 


ARMS   OF   KING  S  COLLEGE. 


6.  Church    Building.— The    large  number    of    new    parishes 
recently  formed,  wherein  additional  churches  have  been  built ;  to 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


bring  the  outward  means  of  grace  nearer  to  the  people  who  have 
been  crowded  out  of  the  older  centres  of  population,  and  make 
better  accommodation  for  districts  that  have  outgrown  the  ancient 
provision  ;  is  an  all  sufficient  testimony  that  the  National  Church 
is  fully  alive  to  the  necessities  laid  upon  her.  The  '  Incorporated 
Church  Building  Society '  reports  that  from  its  foundation  in  1818 
up  to  the  year  1892,  it  has  shared  in  the  erection  of  2,151  new 
churches,  and  in  the  rebuilding,  enlarging,  or  otherwise  improving 
the  accommodation  in  5,846  existing  churches.  By  these  means 
1,808,160  addition.il  seats  were  obtained,  of  which  1,548,661  were  set 


A    MODERN   CHURCH   AND   NATIONAL   SCHOOL. 

apart  for  the  free  use  of  the  parishioners.  A  parliamentary  return 
published  in  1875  showed  that  between  the  years  1840  and  1874  the 
amount  expended  in  church  building  and  restoration,  not  counting 
sums  under  £500,  was  £25,548,703.  A  statement  in  the  '  Official 
Year  Book  '  for  1888,  shows  that  during  the  10  years  1877  to  1886,  no 
less  than  809  new  churches  have  been  built  and  consecrated,  and 
2,572  old  churches  restored  ;  and  the  same  publication  states  that 
during  the  25  years  ending  1884,  exclusive  of  what  has  Ix'cn  dour 
through  Church  Societies,  the  marvellous  sum  of  £35,175,000  has 
been  voluntarily  contributed  by  Churchmen  ;  towards  building  new, 
and  restoring  old  churches  and  parsonages,  and  towards  endowments 
for  the  support  of  the  clergy.  The  various  societies  established  for 
these  and  kindred  purposes  have  contributed  in  addition  £7,426,478 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  263 

during  the  same  period  of  25  years.  These  returns  only  account  for 
the  known-  liberality  of  Churchmen.  There  is  besides  a  vast  amount 
of  secret  benevolence  for  which  no  accounts  can  be  furnished.  Up 
to  the  year  1860  there  was  no  attempt  to  estimate  the  modern 
liberality  and  enterprise  of  the  National  Church  ;  but  they  are 
probably  well  within  the  mark  who  estimate  that  during  the  first 
50  years  of  Queen  Victoria's  beneficent  reign  over  £50,000,000  were 
spent  in  the  single  item  of  Church  building  and  restoration,  apart 
from  endowments  or  stipends  to  the  clergy  ;  and  that  over  4,000  new 
churches  have  been  built  to  meet  the  increased  spiritual  requirements 
of  the  age.  The  illustration  we  have  given  of  a  modern  church,  with 
school  attached,  is  an  example  which  might  be  multiplied  a  thousand- 
fold, of  the  efforts  made  by  the  Church  of  England  to  keep  abreast 
of  the  times.  If  it  were  not  for  her  efforts  many  places  would  be 
without  any  spiritual  ministrations  whatever,  especially  in  villages 
remote  from  towns,  where  the  inhabitants  are  poor.  A  searching 
enquiry  (made  1886)  in  one  English  county  (Somerset),  showed  that 
out  of  520  parishes,  there  were  no  less  than  195  where  no  public 
religious  worship  or  instruction  was  provided,  except  that  of  the 
Church  of  England  ;  and  that  in  400  of  those  52u  parishes  there 
were  no  resident  ministers  of  any  religious  denomination  except  the 
clergy  of  the  Church  of  England.  The  same  enquiry  showed  that 
the  parishes  wherein  other  religious  bodies  do  provide  accommodation, 
and  living  agents,  are  all  among  the  larger  and  richer  populations  ; 
and  in  those  cases  not  one,  but  often  several  different  bodies  were  to 
be  found,  dividing  up  the  people  into  hostile  religions  camps.  The 
195  parishes  in  Somersetshire  where  the  Church  of  England  stands 
alone  are  all  sparsely  inhabited,  difficult  of  access,  and  sadly  deficient 
in  pecuniary  resources.  We  do  not  want  a  better  example  than 
these  figures  provide  of  the  necessity  for  maintaining  the  Church  of 
England  in  her  present  position  of  usefulness  ;  apart  from  the  fur- 
ther need  of  her  contiuuance  as  ;  an  ensign  for  the  people,'  and  the 
emblem  of  unity  and  comprehen-ion.  If  the  Church  were  dis- 
estab  ished  and  disendowed,  nearly  all  these  105  parishes  would  be 
precluded  from  obtaining  those  spiritual  ministrations  by  which  for 
centuries  the  isolated  inhabitants  have  worshipped  in  common  with 
their  fellow-countrymen.  So  much  for  the  villages  ;  but  what  of 
the  poor  and  densely-populated  towns .'  How  few  whose  spiritual 
privileges  are  ready  to  hand  ever  think  of  the  difficulties  that  beset 
a  clergyman  when  he  is  set  to  work  up  a  new  district  and  build  a 
church  .'  Several  years  ago  an  exceeding  great  and  bitter  cry  went 
up  on  behalf  of  teeming  myriads  of  squalid  semi-heathen  poor  in  the 
congested  parts  of  London.  To  meet  his  share  of  the  responsibility 
the  Bishop  of  Rochester  appealed  for  funds  to  build  ten  new  churches, 
lu  four  years  the  task  was  completed.  This  looks  simple  and  easy 
to  say,  but  it  was  much  harder  to  do.  The  writer  has  before  him 
the  particulars  of  the  enormous  work  that  was  needed  in  order 


264  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES   ON 

to  provide  one  of  those  Lcii  churched,  aud  it  is  a  fair  example  of  similar 
work  all  over  England.  A  mission  priest  was  sent' into  an  over- 
populated  district  to  teach  the  people  what  he  could,  and  relieve  the 
clergy  in  several  parishes  of  a  small  share  of  their  ministerial 
responsibility.  A  room  in  a  Board  school  was  first  obtained  for  Sun 
day-school  purposes,  and  on  the  first  Sunday  a  solitary  child  presented 
herself  ;  but  before  the  Board  school  was  given  up  over  1,100  children 
attended  on  the  Sunday  afternoons.  Church  services  were  begun 
in  a  small  house,  then  the  missioner  obtained  a  tent,  after  that  a 
mission  building  ;  and  within  five  years  from  the  commencement  of 
the  work  a  spacious  church  was  built  and  consecrated  ;  while,  in 
addition  to  the  £5,000  received  from  the  '  Ten  Churches  Fund,'  about 
£8,000  were  raised  to  provide  sites  for  church  and  parsonage  (in  this 
particular  district  land  is  very  dear),  and  for  building  the  parsonage 
and  mission  buildings.  Seven  hundred  people  can  now  worship  com- 
fortably in  the  church,  and  all  the  parish  knows  that  anyone  may  go 
there  whenever  it  is  convenient,  and  sit  where  they  please  ;  for  the 
church  is  free  and  open,  and  the  seats  are  not  appropriated. 

7.  Mission  Work  among  the  Poor.— Many  poor  and  needy 
folk  are  averse  to  going  to  church  at  all,  sometimes  because  theyftrl 
that  their  wearing  apparel  is  incongruous,  sometimes  because  the 
church  is  too  far  off  for  them  to  spare  the  time  from  work  or 
domestic  duties  to  attend  a  regular  service  ;  in  other  cases  ba  %iuse 
the  wife  of  a  poor  working  man  cannot  leave  her  young  family  and 
must  either  bring  her  little  ones  with  her  or  stay  away  from  worship 
altogether.  To  meet  these  difficulties,  which  are  very  real  ones, 
mission  buildings  have  been  provided.  From  a  recent  inquiry  it 
has  been  found  that  there  are  4,717  permanent  mission  buildings, 
other  than  parish  and  district  churches,  in  which  services  are 
systematically  held,  and  accommodation  provided  for  843,273  poor 
persons  (Year  Hook,  1888).  In  this  and  many  other  ways,  which 
we  cannot  here  enumerate,  the  Church  of  England  strives  to  win 
the  people  to  Christ.  She  goes  down  among  the  most  degraded  ones 
— in  the  haunts  of  misery,  vice,  and  squalor — seeking  to  relieve  their 
temporal  and 'spiritual  necessities.  There  is  no  corner  of  England 
outside  the  object  of  the  Church's  love  and  labour  ;  neither  is  there 
any  class,  however  high  or  low,  however  depraved  or  vicious,  which 
the  Church  does  not  try  to  reach.  By  means  of  the  parochial  system, 
every  inhabitant  in  our  land  is  enabled  to  claim  a  share  in  the  privi- 
leges of  worship  ;  and  whether  they  will  hear  or  no  every  incumbent 
is  responsible  for  bringing  within  their  reach  the  means  by  which 
their  spiritual  aspirations  may  be  developed. 

1  Bulwark  of  a  mighty  nation,  see  the  Church  of  England  stand, 
Founded  on  the  Bock  of  Ages,  hope  and  glory  of  our  laud. 
Nursing  mother  of  our  freedom,  sowing  truth  from  door  to  door  ; 
Watching  o'er  the  young  and  aged,  Church  alike  of  rich  and  poor.' 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY. 


265 


One  great  want  of  rich  and  poor  alike  in  our  country  is  the  need 
of  a  quiet  place  where  they  may  '  go  apart  and  rest  awhile '  from 
the  cares  and  troubles  that  beset  them.  At  home  privacy  is  out 
of  the  question,  and  many  Christian  .souls  are  hampered  and 
hindered  by  the  irreligious  con  luct  of  other  members  of  their 
families.  It  is  becoming  more  ar.d  more  the  rule  to  have  our 
churches  open  at  stated  times  during  each  day,  even  though  there 
may  not  be  services  going  on  ;  and  increasing  use  is  made  of  the 
advantages  thus  offered  for  p:ivate  meditation  amid  hallowed  sur- 
roundings. The  present  Primate  has  recently  taken  counsel  with 
influential  churchmen  with  a  viow  of  still  further  extending  this 


'  AfMISSI    S 

privilege  ;  and  no  one  can  doubt  that  it  will  be  used  with  advantage, 
not  only  by  the  poor  who  :need  it  most,  but  also  by  the  very  large 
number  of"  business  people  who  so  often  feel  the  need  of  mental 
refreshment  such  as  only  communion  with  God  in  prayer  can  give. 
As  Archbishop  Benson  has  said  :  "  Many  of  our  devout  poor  can  find 
neither  space  nor  quiet  for  the  solitary  closet  prayer  which  •  The 
Father  seeth.'/For  them  the  retirement  of  the  spacious  lonely 
church  is  the  '  closet'  of  Christ.  I  ha.e  known  it  so,  not  only  for 
them,  but  for  the  active  young  workman  in  his  dinner  hour.  But 
.ey  only — many  who  hav  room  enough  and  time  enough  lir.ve 
thanked  God  forgiving  them  there,  in  still  moments,  refreshment, 
strength,  and  a  deeper  understanding  of  why  '  His  House  is  called 


266  ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 

the  House  of  Prayer.'  The  blessing  of  '  having  a  church  to  go  to  ' 
would  be  multiplied  if  it  had  an  open  door  all  day  ;  if  it  were  so 
ordered  as  to  have  some  look  of  a  home;  if  it  had  quiet  kneeling 
places.  It  would  be  not  the  House  of  Divine  Service  only,  as  it  is, 
but  the  '  House  of  Prayer,'  which  our  Lord  desired  that  it  should  be.'' 
Some  further  idea  of  the  work  and  membership  of  the  Church  of 
England  may  be  gleaned  from  the  figures  in  the  footnote  ; '  gathered 
chiefly  from  returns  obtained  for  the  Official  Year  Book  and  by  the 
various  Church  Societies.  But  the  figures  given  do  not  accurately  set 
forth  the  full  extent  of  most  departments  mentioned,  owing  to  the 
difficulty  in  obtaining  returns  from  the  different  parishes.  All  who 
are  specially  interested  in  such  statistics  should  buy  the  Year  Book 
annually.  Truly  may  it  be  said  '  Like  a  mighty  army,  moves  the 
Church  of  God.'  How  can  we  help  feeling  that  such  work  and 
worship  is  very  beneficial  to  the  welfare  of  our  fatherland  1 

8.  Finance. — When  Churchmen  think  of  the  wondrous  liberality 
of  recent  times,  they  will  not  find  any  cause  for  discouragement. 
Yet  we  cannot  avoid  the  reflection  that  such  good  work  for  God  and 
His  Church  would  have  been  far  less  had  it  not  been  that  the  ancient 
provision  for  the  maintenance  of  the  clergy  enabled  the  voluntary 
contributions  to  Churchmen  in  our  own  day  to  be  appropriated  to 
such  extension  and  development.  Those  ancient  endowments  are 
the  real  objects  of  our  adversaries'  designs,  and  therefore  we  should 
take  special  steps  to  guard  them.  The  Liberationist  theory  that 
pre-Reformation  bequests  were  given  for  the  support  of  all  religions, 
because  at  that  time  there  was  only  one  in  existence,  is  one  of  those 
daring  violations  of  common  sense  whose  very  audacity  occasionally 
ensures  their  triumph.  The  ancient  endowments  of  the  Church  were 
given  specifically  to  the  various  cathedrals,  parish  churches,  and 
capitular  bodies,  to  be  used  for  their  separate  maintenance,  that  the 
localities  benefited  thereby  might  always  enjoy  ministerial  service 
according  to  the  use  of  the  Church  of  England.  Let  us  understand 
their  extent.  According  to  a  return  made  to  Parliament  in  1890 
the  gross  income  of  the  Church  from  ancient  endowments  and  modern 
benefactions  amounted  to  £5,753,557  ;  but  as  this  is  calculated  upon 
the  commutation  value  of  tithe  which  dropped  25  per  cent,  during 
the  10  years  ending  1891,  and  because  incumbents  are  liable  for 

1  Church  accommodation  in  1885:— Free,  3,664,429;  Appropriated,l,497,119^5,16I)548 

Communicants  on  the  Rolls  or  communicating  on  Easter  Day,  1885       ...  1,181,915 

Sunday  School  Teachers  in  1888 / 224,750 

Sunday  School  Children  of  all  ages  in  1888 2,555,399 

Members  of  Bible  Classes  in  1885:— Male,  130,901 ;  Female,  144,512     ...^=  275,413 

Number  of  Persons  Baptised  in  1885  :— Infants,  450,794  ;  Adults,  12,938-=  463,732 

Number  of  Persons  Confirmed  in  1891 :— Males,  84,947  ;  Females,  129,584-^  214,531 

Temperance  Society  Members  (1885) :— Juvenile,  318,156;  Adult,  231,066^  549,222 

Voluntary  Choristers  in  1S85:     M-i!e,  153,079  ;  Female,  is,991       =  172,070 

Incumbents  (Y.U.  1892;,  13,747  ;  Uuputyaml  Assistant.  Clergy,  6.686     .„—  20,43* 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  267 

repairs,  taxes  on  land  and  houses,  and  pay  more  than  half  the  stipends 
of  the  assistant  curates  the  nett  receipts  barely  reach  three  millions  a 
year.  Divide  this  among  the  14,000  benefices,  and  an  average  income 
of  little  more  than  £200  per  incumbent  is  the  result.  From  the 
Ecclesiastical  Commissioners'  return  for  the  year  1890,we  learn  that 
since  their  Commission  Fund  was  created  in  1840  they  have 
augmented  and  endowed  5.700  benefices,  at  a  yearly  cost  of  £781.400, 
most  of  which  is  derived  from  tithe  and  glebe  lands  that  the  Com- 
missioners have  received  for  re-distribution  ;  to  meet  which  private 
benefactors  have  contributed  additional  sums  amounting  in  the 

.-ate  to  no  less  than  £104.340  a  year. 

Besides  the  contributions  of  Churchmen  for  Home  and  Foreign 
Missions,  Church  Building  and  Restoration,  and  Elementary  Educa- 
tion ;  there  are  numerous  other  directions  in  which  their  liberality 
flows  unceasingly.  The  training  of  clergy  ;  middle  class  schools  ; 
charitable  institutions  of  various  kinds,  such  as  Orphanages,  Peni- 
tentiaries, and  Reformatories  ;  Nursing  Institutions  and  Deaconess 
Homes  ;  Cottage  Hospitals  and  Convalescent  Homes  ;  all  receive  a 
very  large  share  of  the  benevolence  of  Churchpeople.  Then  there 
are  the  current  expenses  of  every  church,  to  be  met,  at  a  cost  of 
£600,000  a  year  ;  and  the  poor  of  each  parish  to  be  looked  after, 
which  requires  and  receives  quite  £500,000  a  year  more.  In  the 
matter  of  Hospital  Sunday  alone  it  is  known  that  Churchmen  in 
London  subscribed  £449,469  in  theyears  1873-1891  ;  out  of  £587,502, 
the  whole  amount  contributed  by  all  denominations.  The  total  volun 
tary  contributions  of  the  Church  of  England  in  the  year  1885, 
which  is  the  latest  year  for  which  complete  returns  are  to  hand, 
t-rceed  Ji-re  millions  of  money — nearly  all  of  which  is  available  for 
the  general  good,  because  Churchmen  are  comparatively  free  from 
anxiety  in  respect  to  the  incomes  of  the  beneficed  clergy,  owing  to 
the  endowments  left  to  the  Church  in  earlier  ages.  We  now  know 
that  the  work  of  the  Church  of  England  is  too  great  and  beneficial 
to  the  realm  for  it  ever  to  cease  being  the  chief  religious  body  in  the 
land.  Her  adversaries  may  approach  to  hurt  her,  but  if  her  children 
are  on  guard  they  will  approach  in  vain.  Yet  it  is  not  alone  for  her 
material  possessions  that  Churchmen  care.  They  are  all  as  nothing 
compared  with  her  Apostolic  character  and  her  true  Catholic  doctrines. 
If  these  are  let  slip  we  have  no  anchor  of  hope  remaining.  It  is 
hardly  possible,  however,  that  we  shall  let  them  go.  Our  Apostolical 
-  leaders  were  never  more  able  and  devoted  than  they  are  now  ;  nor 
were  they  ever  so  numerous  and  united,  as  the  concluding  chapter 
will  show.  We  call  to  them  '  Watchmen,  what  of  the  night '  1  and 
they  answer  cheerily  '  The  morning  cometh.' 


268  ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  Off 

CHAPTER     XXX.     (A.D.     1784-18S8.) 
THE  EXTENSION  OF  THE  EPISCOPATE. 

"  Look  forth  !  that  stream  behold, 
That  stream  upou  whose  bosom  we  have  passed, 
Floating  at  ease,  while  nations  have  effaced 
Kations,  and  death  has  gathered  to  his  fold 
Long  lines  of  mighty  kings — Look  forth,  my  soul ! 
(Nor  in  this  vision  be  tbou  slow  to  trust) 
The  living  waters,  less  and  less  by  guilt 
Stained  and  polluted,  brighten  as  they  *o\\."— Wordsworth. 

I.  The  American  Episcopate.— Although  our  attention  has 
been  chiefly  directed  to  purely  English  affairs,  it  would  be  a  grave 
error  to  omit  all  reference  to  the  growth  of  the  Anglican  Church 
beyond  the  seas.  For  more  than  a  century  the  Colonial  clergy  had 
been  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  bishop  of  London,  who  appointed 
commissaries  to  enquire  into  their  conduct.  All  attempts  to  form 
Colonial  bishoprics  met  with  chilling  responses  from  the  English 
statesmen,  apart  from  whom  the  bishops  could  not  act.  The  young 
were  not  confirmed,  clergy  could  not  be  ordained  without  the 
expense  and  risk  of  long  and  dangerous  voyages,  and  therefore  the 
Church  did  not  prosper  abroad.  Until  1776,  when  the  transatlantic 
settlements  declared  their  Independence,  America  was  the  fairest 
gem  of  all  the  British  dependencies  ;  but  after  a  struggle  of  several 
years  their  Independence  was  acknowledged  by  England.  Some  of 
the  American  clergy  had  taken  up  the  cause  of  Independence  ;  those- 
who  were  faithful  to  English  rule  were  driven  out  of  the  revolu- 
tionary States  ;  and  at  the  close  of  the  war  the  Church  in  America 
was  at  its  lowest  ebb.  In  Virginia  alone,  where  there  had  been  164 
churches  and  91  clergy,  only  28  clergy  were  left  and  95  of  the 
churches  had  been  destroyed.  As  it  was  impossible  for  the  bishop  of 
London  to  have  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction  over  revolted  States, 
a  native  Episcopate  was  more  than  ever  imperatively  necessary 
if  the  Anglican  Episcopal  Church  in  America  was  to  continue 
its  existence.  The  State  of  Connecticut  was  the  first  to  move 
in  the  matter.  The  clergy  elected  one  of  their  number,  Dr. 
Samuel  Seabury,  as  their  bishop,  and  sent  him  to  England  for 
consecration.  The  English  prelates  could  not  consecrate  him. 
however,  because  according  to  law  all  bishops  were  bound  to 
take  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  English  crown  ;  which  Seabury,  as 
the  subject  of  a  '  foreign '  State,  was  unable  to  do.  He  therefore 
went  to  Scotland,  at  the  suggestion  of  Prebendary  Befkeley,  and 
received  the  coveted  Apostolic  gift  of  episcopacy  from  the  persecuted 
and  proscribed  Scotch  Church ;  at  the  hands  of  Bishops  Kilgour, 
Petrie,  and  Skinner  in  the  upper  room  of  a  house  in  Long  Acre,  • 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY. 


269 


Aberdeen  ;  Nov.  14,  1784.  Thus  Seabury  became  the  first  bishop  of 
the  American  Church,  and  his  unpretentious  episcopal  residence  at 
London,  Connecticut,  still  stands  as  a  relic  of  transatlantic 
history.  Meanwhile  the  clergy  in  the  States  of  New  York.  New 
Jersey,  and  Pennsylvania  had  agreed  to  hold  a  General  Convention 
of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United  States,  to  which  clergy  and 
laity  should  send  delegates.  It  met  at  Philadelphia,  Sept.  27.  1785, 
and"  drew  up  an  application  to  the  English  bishops  for  consecra- 
tion of  its  nominees.  But  the  Convention  had  proposed  some 
radical  changes  in  the  Prayer-book,  which  the  English  bishops 
objected  to; "so  the  latter  guardedly  replied  (Feb.  24,  1786)  that, 
while  willing  to  be  instrumental  in  procuring  for  Americans 
"  the  complete  exercise  of  an  holy  religion,  and  the  enjoy- 
ment of  that  ecclesiastical  constitution  which  we  believe  to  be 

Apostolical  ;  we 
cannot  but  be  ex- 
tremely cautious 
lest  we  should  be 
the  instruments  of 
establishing  an 
ecclesiastical  sys- 
tem which  will  be 
called  a  branch  of 
the  Church  of  Eng- 
land, but  may 
afterwards  appear 
to  have  departed 
from  it  essentially, 
either  in  doctrine 
or  in  discipline." 
The  Convention 
met  again  in  June, 
1786,  to  consider 
this  warning,  and 

SEABUBY'S  HOUSE.  NEW  LONDON,  coxx..  U.S.A.   afreed  to  abandon 

the    more   radical 

changes.  They  then  elected  Dr.  White  of  Philadelphia,  and  Dr. 
Proroost  of  New  York,  who  were  sent  to  England  for  consecration. 
A  special  Act  of  Parliament  was  obtained,  empowering  the  primate  to 
dispense  with  the  oath  of  allegiance  in  the  case  of  bishops  consecrated 
for  places  outside  the  dominion  of  the  English  Crown  ;  and  the 
bishops-elect  were  consecrated  by  the  archbjshops  of  Canterbury  and 
York,  assisted  by  the  bishops  of  Bath  and  Wells,  and  Peterborough, 
in  the  Chapel  of  Lambeth  Palace,  Feb.  4,  1787.  The  new  bishops  at 
once  returned  to  America  and  landed  on  the  following  Easter  Day. 
There  were  thus  two  lines  of  Episcopal  succession  bestowed  upon 
America,  Scotch  and  English.  On  Sept.  19,  1790,  the  archbishop  of 


270  ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 

•Canterbury,  assisted  by  the  bishops  of  London  and  Rochester,  con- 
secrated a  fourth  American  bishop,  James  Madison  of  Virginia  ;  and 
on  Sept.  17,  1792,  all  four  American  bishops  united  in  consecrating 
Thomas  John  Claggett  to  be  bishop  of  Maryland.  Every  American 
bishop  of  the  present  day  can  trace  his  episcopal  succession,  through 
Bishop  Claggett,  to  the  Scotch  and  English  Churches.  Having  thus 
obtained  its  Episcopate,  and  consequently  the  power  of  progression 
and  reproduction,  the  American  branch  of  the  Anglican  Church 
made  rapid  strides.  At  the  present  time  (1889)  it  has  no  less  than 
69  bishops,  no  longer  of  '  States,'  but  of  dioceses  ;  not  on  the  Atlantic 
seaboard  merely,  but  throughout  the  vast  American  Confederacy. 
Besides  which,  it  has  more  than  4,000  clergy,  nearly  half  a  million 
registered  communicants,  and  over  a  million  and  a  quarter  of 
baptised  members.  The  number  of  persons  baptised  in  the  three 
years  ending  1888  was  171,700,  and  of  confirmees  112,783.  Its  volun- 
tary contributions  for  Church  purposes  in  the  same  three  years 
exceeded  33  millions  of  dollars,  part  of  which  was  expended  in 
missions  to  the  heathen. 

2.  The  Colonial  Episcopate.— On  August  12,  1787,  Dr. 
Charles  Inglis  was  consecrated  to  be  the  first  Colonial  bishop.  His 
sphere  of  work  was  in  Nova  Scotia,  whither  so  many  of  the  loyal 
refugees  had  fled  during  the  War  of  Independence  ;  but  his  jurisdic- 
tion included  all  the  British  possessions  in  America  until  the  con- 
secration of  Dr.  Mountain  as  bishop  of  Quebec,  in  1793,  relieved 
him  of  the  charge  of  Upper  and  Lower  Canada.  In  1839  Newfound- 
land was  made  a  separate  diocese,  to  still  further  relieve  the  bishop 
of  Nova  Scotia,  and  in  the  same  year  the  diocese  of  Toronto  was 
founded  out  of  the  diocese  of  Quebec.  In  1849  the  vast  territory 
belonging  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  was  made  the  diocese  of 
Rupertsland,  with  Dr.  Anderson  for  its  first  bishop.  Canada  is  now 
divided  into  22  bishoprics. 

Turning  to  our  Indian  dependencies  we  do  not  find  the  same 
rapidity  of  progress,  but  then  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  con- 
ditions are  different.  In  1814  the  see  of  Calcutta  was  founded,  with 
Dr.  Middleton  for  its  first  bishop,  but  he  was  only  a  sort  of  chaplain 
general  under  the  archbishop  of  "Canterbury  to  look  after  the  chap- 
lains of  the  East  India  Company.  When  Bishop  Heber  was  sent  out  in 
1823,  the  diocese  of  Calcutta  was  declared  to  include  all  the  posses- 
sions of  the  East  India  Company,  including  the  Straits  Settlements, 
but  in  1835  the  bishopric  of  Madras  was  created,  followed  by  that  of 
Bombay  in  1837.  There  are  now  12  bishops  working  in  Asia,  and  the 
bishop  of  Calcutta  is  their  metropolitan  ;  but  with  the  exception  of 
the  Native  States  of  Travancore  and  Cochin,  where  the  bishop  is  free 
from  civil  restrictions,  the  law  will  not  allow  the  Indian  bishops  "to 
have  or  use  any  jurisdiction,  or  exercise  any  episcopal  functions, 
except  such  as  shall  or  may  from  time  to  time  be  limited  by 
letters  patent  under  the  great  seal  of  the  United  Kingdom  ;  "so  that 


ENGLISH    CHURCH   HISTORY.  271 

Church  extension  and  missionary  enterprise  are  much  hampered. 
Nevertheless  there  are  now  more  than  700  clergy  in  the  East  Indies. 
of  whom  nearly  300  are  natives. 

Still  better  results  are  recorded  of  Anttrabuia.  Until  1836  its 
vast  continents  and  innumerable  islands  were  held  to  be  an  arch- 
deaconry of  Calcutta,  several  thousand  miles  away,  and  there  were 
very  few  clergy  or  churches.  But  since  Dr.  Broughta*  was  made 
bishop  of  Australia  in  1836,  with  his  seat  in  Sydney,  14  additional 
dioceses  have  been  founded  ;  in  which  over  700  clergy  are  working  ; 
while  cathedrals  and  churches  are  springing  up  all  over  the  conti- 
nent. The  first  bishop  for  Tasmania  was  consecrated  in  1842.  The 
Australian  Church  is  governed  by  its  own  diocesan  and  provincial 
synods,  in  which  the  laity  take  part.  In  New  Zealand,  and  the 
Pacific  Isles,  which  received  its  first  missionary  (Mr.  Marsden)  in 
1814,  and  its  first  bishop  (Dr.  Selwyn)  in  1841.  the  same  progress 
appears  ;  for  there  are  now  no  less  than  eight  dioceses. 

In  the  West  Indies  Church  work  went  on  side  by  side  with  the 
civil  settlements  from  the  very  first,  and  was  largely  subsidised  by 
the  authorities  ;  but  there  were  no  bishops  sent  thereuntil  1*24. 
when  Bishop  Coleridge  was  sent  to  P.arbadoes.  and  Bishop  Lipscombe 
to  Jamaica.  In  1868  the  Government  withdrew  its  pecuniary  aid. 
and  left  the  West  Indian  Church  to  take  care  of  itself.  It  now 
comprises  ten  bishoprics,  and  includes  British  Guiana  and  the  Falk- 
land Islands.  Smith  Africa,  too,  has  an  important  and  growing 
Church  with  seven  bishoprics  ;  and  there  are  other  dioceses  at  St. 
Helena,  Mauritius,  and  Sierra  Leone,  peculiar  in  tl.cir  isolation  and 
climatic  conditions,  which  are  generally  grouped  with  South  Africa. 
There  are  also  ten  missionary  bishops  who  work  in  North  and  Mid 
China,  Japan,  Honolulu,  Madagascar,  Equatorial  Africa,  Niger  Trrri- 
tory  and  Yoruba.  All  this  is  the  development  of  a  single  century  ; 
for  whereas,  before  1787,  there  were  no  colonial  or  missionary 
bishops,  there  are  now  eighty-seven  in  active  work  abroad;  who 
in  common  with  the  American,  Irish,  and  Scotch  bishops  look  upon 
the  archbishop  of  Canterbury  as  their  Chief  Superintendent.  Of 
course  bishops  do  not  make  a  Church,  any  more  than  officers  make 
an  army,  but  they  are  essential  to  its  government.  When  bishops  go 
out  to  the  colonies  they  are  invariably  followed  by  more  clergy  ;  who 
bring  the  means  of  grace  within  the  reach  of  the  colonists,  form 
them  into  congregations,  and  '  build  them  up  in  their  most  holy 
faith.'  The  slightest  contemplation  of  the  continued  prosperity  and 
extension  of  the  Anglican  Episcopate,  radiating  as  it  does  from 
England  to  the  remotest  corners  of  the  world,  will  help  anyone  to 
answer  those  who  say  that  our  Church  is  worn  out  or  effete. 
When  a  tree  begins  to  decay  the  signs  thereof  are  seen  in  its  wither- 
ing branches :  but  the  aspect  of  the  National  Church  shows  that 
from  every  limb  she  is  continually  putting  forth  new  shoots,  the  leaves 
whereof  are  '  for  the  healing  of  the  nations.' 


272 


ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 


3.  Home  Diooesan  Changes.— Not  only  in  the  colonies  has 
the  Episcopate  increased. 
It  has  been  augmented  in 
England  also,  although  not 
to  the  same  extent.  The 
Home  dioceses  are  not  to 
be  measured  by  area  so 
much  as  by  the  number  of 
inhabitants,  clergy,  and 
parishes ;  and  the  percent- 
age of  English  bishops  was 
never  so  disproportionate 
as  now.  At  the  beginning  ( 
of  the  18th  century  there 
were  not  so  many  people  in 
the  whole  of  England  and 
Wales  as  there  are  now  in 
the  London  postal  district, 
but  there  were  then  27  BKISTOL  CATHKDKAL. 

bishops.  Now  that  the  population  has  increased  four-fold  there  are  only 
34.  But  the  population  and  revenues  of  the  27  old  dioceses  varied  so 
greatly  that  the  commissioners  appointed  in  1831,  to  enquire  into 
the  revenues  and  patronage  of  the  Church,  proposed  that,  for  greater 
efficiency  of  administration,  episcopal  incomes  should  be  equalised 
•  and  the  area  of  the  dioceses  rearranged  ;  but  they  did  not  propose 
to  increase  the  number  of  bishops.  The  rapid  growth  of  northern 
and  midland  towns  made  the  creation  of  new  bishoprics  imperative, 
but  the  desideratum  was  to  be  brought  about  by  amalgamating 
others.  Bishop  Gray  had  made  the  diocese  of  Bristol  very  unpopular 
by  voting  against  the  Reform  Bill  of  1831,  and  the  rioters  burned 
down  the  episcopal  mansion  ;  perhaps  this  was  one  reason  why  the 
commissioners  obtained  the  suppression  of  the  see.  It  had  existed 
from  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII.,  but  in  1836  its  territory  was  divided 
among  the  dioceses  of  Gloucester,  Salisbury,  and  Bafh  and  Wells  ; 
the  title  and  cathedral  falling  to  the  see  of  Gloucester.  Active  stej  s 
are  now  being  taken  to  revive  the  Bristol  diocese,  which  ought  never 
to  have  been  done  away  ;  an  act  for  the  purpose  having  been  re- 
cently obtained.  Simultaneously  with  the  partition  of  Bristol,  and 
aided  by  its  revenues,  a  new  diocese  was  created  for  South  Yorkshire; 
with  the  bishop's  seat  at  Ripon  (see  Vol.  I.,  page  92),  where  there  was 
an  historic  church.  It  had  been  monastic  from  the  days  of  Wilfrid 
of  York  to  1536,  when  it  was  made  collegiate.  Archbishop  Theodore 
had  wished  it  to  be  an  episcopal  centre  so  early  as  the  7th  century  ; 
and  as  parts  of  Wilfrid's  church  are  incorporated  in  the  present 
cathedral  it  may  be  to  us  as  an  embodiment  of  English  Church  history, 
linking  us  with  the  days  of  the  Heptarchy  ;  so  that  no  more  fitting 
choice  could  have  been  made  for  the  seat  of  the  first  modern  bishopric.. 


ENGLISH   CHURCH   HISTORY. 


273 


4.  The  Diocese  of  Manchester.— The  principles  that  guided 
the  Ecclesiastical  Commissioners  to  split  up  the  diocese  of  Bristol 
led  them  to  sub-divide  other  dioceses.  The  see  of  Ely  received 
from  that  of  Lincoln  the  counties  of  Bedford  and  Huntingdon  ; 
Oxford  diocese  received  Berkshire  from  that  of  Salisbury"  and 
Buckinghamshire  from  the  see  of  Lincoln  ;  Peterborough  diocese 
received  Leicestershire  also  from  that  of  Lincoln  ;  and°the  latter 
diocese,  having  got  rid  of  three  counties,  was  enabled  to  relieve  the 
see  of  York  by  taking  charge  of  Nottinghamshire.  The  Commis- 
sioners also  proposed  to  amalgamate  the  ancient  see  of  Sodor  and 
Man  with  the  diocese  of  Chester,  and  unite  the  old  Welsh  dioceses 
of  Bangor  and  St.  Asaph  ;  so  as  to  obtain  funds  wherewith  to 
found  a  new  liocese  for  the  cotton  manufacturing  towns,  with  the 


MANCHESTER  CATHEDRAL. 

bishop's  seat  at  Manchester.  The  amalgamations  were  to  come  into 
force  on  the  deaths  of  one  or  other  of  the  bishops  whose  sees  were 
to  be  affected;  but  when  Bishop  Carey  of  St.  Asaph  died,  the  bishop  of 
Bangor  declined  to  be  responsible  for  the  extra  work;  and  the  Welch 
people  had  by  that  time  petitioned  against  the  suppression  of  such 
historic  sees.  As  the  relief  of  the  immense  diocese  of  Chester 
could  no  longer  be  delayed,  the  funds  for  the  diocese  of  Manchester 
were  raised  by  private  subscription  ;  and  Dr.  Prince  Lee  was  made 
the  first  bishop  in  1848.  The  Cathedral  of  Manchester  was  never 
monastic.  It  had  been  a  parish  church  from  pre-Norman  times,  and 
remained  so  up  to  1422  ;  when  Thomas  De-la- Warre,  the  lord  of 
the  Manor  and  also  the  rector,  obtained  a  charter  from  Henry  V. 


274 


ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 


by  which  it  became  a  collegiate  body.  The  extensive  glebe  lands 
which  this  church  had  held  since  Saxon  times,  became  more  and 
more  valuable  as  the  old  parish  of  Manchester  grew  from  a  village 
into  a  populous  town  ;  but  as  its  revenues  belonged  to  the  parish, 
the  daughter  churches  claimed  and  obtained,  by  special  Act  of  Par- 
liament, the  right  to  a  proportionate  share  therein. 

5.  The  Diocese  of  Truro. — Nearly  30  years  elapsed  before 
any  further  increase  was  effected  in  the  Home  Episcopate.  Any 
projects  which  were  mooted  fell  through,  chiefly  because  there  were 
political  reasons  against  increasing  the  number  of  spiritual  peers, 
At  length  it  was  arranged  that  the  number  of  bishops'  seats  in  the 
House  of  Lords  should  not  be  increased,  but  that,  with  the  exception 
of  the  archbishops  and  the  bishops  of  London,  Durham,  and  Win- 
chester, the  bishops  consecrated  in  future  should  occupy  the  seats  in 

order  of  their  con- 
secration. Another 
difficulty  was  the 
question  of  funds  ; 
for  it  was  felt  that 
a  bishop's  income 
should  be  sufficient 
to  enable  him  to 
uphold  the  dignity, 
hospitality,  and 
charity  belonging 
to  his  position  and 
office.  In  the  far 
south-west  of  Eng- 
land, an  enormous 
extent  of  territory 
had  for  over  800 
TRUEO  CATHEDKAL  (as  contemplated).  years  been  under 
the  oversight  of  the  bishop  of  Exeter  (see  Vol.  I.,  p.  40).  It  was  in 
every  way  desirable  that  the  ancient  diocese  of  Cornwall  should  be 
revived.  By  1"875,  and  chiefly  through  the  munificence  of  one  lady 
sufficient  funds  were  raised  to  endow  the  bishopric.  It  was  then  easy 
to  obtain  a  special  Act  of  Parliament  (38  and  39  Viet,  c.  34)  to  allot 
the  boundaries  of  the  diocese.  The  old  parish  church  of  St.  Mary  at 
Truro  was  assigned  for  the  bishop's  seat,  but  as  this  was  altogether 
unsuitable  for  the  cathedral  a  new  one  had  to  be  built ;  and  it  is  a 
most  encouraging  sign  of  the  times  that,  even  while  the  Church's 
enemies  are  besieging  her  gates,  her  children  are  nobly  coming 
forward  with  hundreds  of  thousands  of  pounds  to  build  and  endow 
new  cathedrals,  which  shall  not  fear  to  hold  up  their  heads  beside 
the  marvels  of  mediaeval  architecture.  Truro  diocese  lays  claim  to 
great  antiquity.  We  read  of  a  Christian  king  of  Cornwall  in  the  4th 


ENGLISH    CHURCH    HISTORY.  275 

century,  and  there  are  remains  of  a  5th  century  church  (see  Vol.  I., 
p.  39)  still  standing  within  ten  miles  of  Truro.  The  foundation  stones 
of  the  new  cathedral  were  laid  in  1877  with  grand  masonic  honours  by 
the  Prince  of  Wales,  Duke  of  Cornwall  ;  who  was  present  at  its  con- 
secration also,  November  3,  1887.  Only  the  chancel  and  transepts 
are  built  as  yet  ;  the  nave  and  towers  will  come  in  time.  Cathedrals 
cannot  be  built  in  a  decade.  The  ancient  parish  church  of  St.  Mary. 
Truro,  is  incorporated  in  the  south  aisle  of  the  chancel.  When  com- 
pleted the  cathedral  will  accommodate  2,500  worshippers.  On  the 
happy  day  when  the  eastern  portion  was  dedicated.  Archbishop 
Benson  (to  whom,  when  first  bishop  of  Truro,  the  commencement  and 
progress  of  the  building  was  due)  preached  a  memorable  sermon.  '  The 
anti-religious  politician  would  exclude  history  from  education,'  he 
said.  '  The  ultramontane  would  exclude  it  from  being  cross-examined. 
Yet  happily  both  are  making  history  meanwhile,  and  writing  them- 
selves down  in  it.  Well  may  they  hate  it  here  in  England.  The 
one  can  but  read  that  England  was  a  Church  before  it  was  a  State  : 
the  other  that  England  never  acquiesced  in  the  foreign  prelate.  .  .  . 
Rise  to  your  birthrights — your  English,  catholic,  apostolic,  Christian 
birthrights — help,  comfort,  strengthen,  revive,  found.' 

6.  The  Diocese  of  St.  Albans. — The  enormously  rapid  growth 
of    London   loudly  called  for  some  re-arrangement  of   the  metro- 
politan   dioceses.      The    pressure   was  greatest   on  the   bishop    of 
Rochester,  who  used  to  be  responsible  for  Essex  and  Hertfordshire, 
besides  part  of  Kent  ;  and  the  bishop  of  Winchester,  whose  juris- 
diction formerly  included  the  county  of  Surrey.     So  it  was  arranged 
that  Essex  and  Herts  should  be  made  a  separate  diocese  ;  and  that 
Rochester  should  be  bounded  by  the  southern  bank  of  the  Thames, 
to  relieve  the  see  of  Winchester  of  the  care  of  Surrey.     Part  of  the 
endowment  for  the  new  diocese  was  obtained  by  the  sale  of  the  bishop 
of  Winchester's  London  palace  and  part  by  voluntary  subscriptions, 
a  suitable  church  for  its  cathedral  being  ready  to  hand  in  the  famous 
St.  Albara  Abbey,  which  yields  to  no  cathedral  in  antiquity  or  historic 
glory ' .     Its  name  and  traditions  unmistakably  remind  us   that  the 
ancient  British  Church  had  adherents  ready  to  shed  thei  r  bloodi  n 
her  defence.       The  church   was  partly  built  in  the   Saxon  times, 
partly  about  the  time  of  the  Norman  Conquest,  and  has  been  added 
to  several  times  since.      It  was  restored  by  public  subscription  in 
1688,  and  has  lately  been  completely  renovated  by  the  private  muni- 
ficence of  an  earnest  layman.    Dr.  Thomas  Claughton,  who  had  been 
bishop  of  Rochester  before,  became  the  first  bishop  ;  A.D.  1877. 

7.  The  Diocese    of  Liverpool.— Thirty  years'  experience  of 
the  working  of  the  diocese  of  Manchester  had  conclusively  dem«n- 

1  Two  views  of  St.  Albans  Cathedral  will  be  found  in  Vol.  I.,  pages  11  and  153. 

r  2 


276 


ILLUSTRATED    NOTES    ON 


strated  the  wisdom  of  its  foundation.  As  the  diocese  of  Chester  was 
still  far  too  large  and  populous  for  any  ordinary  mortal  to  superintend 
properly,  and  as  there  were  several  other  districts  of  England  in 
similar  straits,  a  number  of  prominent  churchmen  met  in  London  in 
1876  to  consider  what  was  best  to  be  done.  They  petitioned  the 
Government  to  support  any  well-considered  measure  that  might  be 
introduced  in  Parliament  for  the  extension  of  the  Home  Episcopate, 
and  the  redistribution  and  division  of  dioceses.  The  result  was  that 

in    1878   an  Act    was 

passed  (41  and  42Vict., 
c.  68)  which  provided 
for  the  foundation  of 
bishoprics  at  Liver- 
pool,Newcastle,  South- 
well, and  Wakefield  ; 
as  soon  as  sufficient 
funds  were  placed  in 
the  hands  of  the 
Ecclesiastical  Commis- 
sioners to  enable  the 
bishops  to  receive  ade- 
quate stipends.  Liver- 
pool was  the  first  to 
take  shape,  because 
the  merchant  princes 
of  that  city  could  bet- 
ter spare  the  needful 
funds  ;  and  the  diocese 
became  an  accom- 
plished fact  in  1880. 
We  may  take  some 
statistics  of  the  diocese 
of  Liverpool  as  illus- 
trative of  the  need  for 
an  increased  episco- 
pate. In  the  year  1687 
there  were  only  25 
churches  in  the  whole 
territory  now  forming 
the  see.  The  popula- 
tion increased,  and  the  churches  also,  so  that  by  the  year  1837 
there  were  no  less  than  78  churches  in  the  same  area.  53  new 
churches  had  sprung  up  in  150  years.  But  during  the  next  50  years 
no  less  than  122  quite  new  churches  were  added  to  the  number, 
making  200  altogether.  These  figures  were  given  by  Dr.  Kyle,  the 
first  bishop  of  the  see,  when  he  consecrated  a  new  church  on  the  last 
day  of  the  year  1887  ;  and  when  we  remember  that  the  bishops  are 


CATHEDRAL. 


ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY.  277 

the  generals,  so  to  speak,  of  the  Church,  it  becomes  manifest  that 
one  additional  staff -officer  at  least  is  needed  in  a  district  where  the 
rank  and  file  of  the  clergy  have  been  multiplied  tenfold.  As  at 
Truro,  there  was  no  suitable  Church  in  Liverpool  for  a  cathedral  ; 
and  the  mother  church  of  the  city.  '  Old  St.  Peter's,'  built  in  I 
accommodates  the  bishop's  stooL  But  unlike  Truro,  the  Churchmen 
of  Liverpool  have  not  yet  seen  their  way  to  build  a  new  cathedral ; 
although  there  are  many  men  in  the  second  city  of  our  great  empire 
who  coald  build,  from  foundation  to  vane,  without  missing  the  money, 
a  cathedral  which  should  worthily  represent  the  dignity  of  our 
National  Church  to  the  streams  of  Americans  and  Colonists  who  pass 
through  England's  chief  seaport  on  their  European  travels.  On  the 
other  hand,  it  is  but  fair  to  remember  that  the  city  is  still  in- 
sufficiently provided  with  parish  churches,  through  the  inability 
of  Churchmen  to  keep  pace  with  the  very  rapid  increase  of  the 
population  in  recent  times. 

8.  The  Diocese  of  Newcastle.— In  1882  the  county  of  North- 
umberland obtained  a  cathedral  of  its  own  once  more.  The  develop- 
ment of  the  mining  and  manufacturing  populations  that  have  sprung 
up  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Tyne,  demanded  that  some  special 
steps  should  be  taken  to  provide  for  the  spiritual  direction  of  that 
distant  county.  It  is  felt  by  many  that  the  arrangement  of  England 
into  counties  offers  the  best  solution  for  a  further  extension  of  the 
episcopate — i.e.  that  there  should  be  a  bishop  provided  for  each 
county,  exclusive  of  urban  bishops  for  large  centres  of  popu- 
lation such  as  London.  Liverpool,  Manchester,  and  Birmingham  ; 
which  need  resident  Bishops  all  their  own.  The  position  of  a 
bishop  is  far  different  now,  than  when  in  the  earliest  days  of  English 
Christianity  he  was  the  head  of  a  devoted  band  of  missionaries. 
From  the  nature  of  things  their  position  has  developed  into  that  of 
governors  of  the  extensive  and  multitudinous  organizations,  called 
parishes,  many  of  which  are  themselves  more  populous  than  some 
kingdoms  were  under  the  Heptarchy.  Newcastle  was  chosen  to  be 
the  seat  of  the  northernmost  bishopric  because  it  is  a  great  metro- 
polis, the  centre  of  trade  and  commerce  for  the  north.  But  Lindis- 
farne  was  the  centre  of  Church  life  and  missionary  enterprise  long 
before  the  Church  of  England  was  fully  formed.  It  was  indeed  '  the 
cradle  of  Anglian  Christianity.'  For  240  years  from  its  foundation 
by  St.  Aidan,  Lindisfarne  was  an  Episcopal  seat.  Chester-le-Street 
held  the  honour  for  113  years  after  the  Danish  invasion  ;  and  then 
the  bishop's  stool  was  taken  to  Durham,  where  it  remained 
till  now.  The  revenues  of  Lindisfarne  were  appropriated  to 
Durham  by  the  Norman  nobles  ;  and  then  Lindisfarne  became 
a  dependent  cell  to  its  own  offspring.  The  miniature  cathe- 
dral of  the  island  was  destroyed  when  the  monasteries  were 
suppressed,  and  is  now  in  ruins.  Many  people  hoped  that 


278 


ILLUSTRATED   NOTES    ON 


when  the  bishopric  of  Northumbria  was  refounded  the  old  title  of 
Lindisfarne  would  be  revived,  and  that  the  fine  old  abbey  church  of 
Hexham  (see  Vol.  I.,  p.  90),  which  had  also  been  the  seat  of  a  pre- 
Norman  bishopric,  would  receive  the  new  bishops'  stool  ;   but  in 
this    business-like   age    sentiment    must    necessarily  give    way   to 
usefulness.      The    old    parish    Church  of    S.   Nicholas,   Newcastle, 
which  was  founded  at  the  Norman  Conquest,  rebuilt  in  the  14th 
century,   and  enlarged  in  the   15th  century,  is  not  unworthy   of 
episcopal  rank  ;  although  it  was  never  intended  to  be  more  than  the 
parish  church  of  a  busy  town.  It  was 
made  a  collegiate  church  by  Henry    __ 
VIII.    The  funds  for  the  endowment   | 
of  this  see  were  soon  obtained,  and   j 
a  respected  member  of  the  Society   p 
of    Friends    gave    Benwell     Tower   s 
to  be   the   residence  of  the  bishop.    | 
So  noble  a  gift,  from  one  who  did   | 
not  conform  to  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land, serves  to  indicate  that  there  is    '  _•  :.  V 
much  latent  respect  for  the  Apostolic    j[ 
form  of  Church  government  among    Jl; 
those  who  have  it  not.     The  spire  of    ijiiit;!. 
Newcastle  Cathedral,though  an  archi-    ;j 
tectural    deception  upheld  by  iron    f 
supports,  is  unsurpassed  for  elegance 
and  proportion.    The  inside  of  the 
cathedral  has  been  renovated  recently      '"^ 
at  great  cost,  and  the  chancel  adorned    Up 
with  tasteful  gifts  from  loving  friends.    IP 
The  first  bishop,  Dr.  Ernest  Wilber-    I;:;: 
force,  was  consecrated  on  St.  James's    WM 
Day,  1882,  in  Durham  Cathedral.         jp 


NEWCASTLE   CATHEDRAL. 


ENGLISH   CHURCH  HISTORY.  279 

9.  The  Diocese  of  Southwell.  —  The  ancient  diocese  of 
Lichfield  has  been  the  mother  of  no  less  than  twelve  daughter  sees  ; 
all  of  them  flourishing  and  all  densely  populated.  Derbyshire  was 
taken  out  of  it  in  1884.  and  Nottinghamshire  was  taken  away  from 
the  diocese  of  Lincoln  at  the  same  time.  From  these  two  counties 
another  new  diocese  was  formed.  Many  wisbe  i  Nottingham  to  be 
the  seat  of  the  bishop,  bat  the  grand  old  minster  of  Southwell  (see 
page  57)  obtained  the  preference,  althoush  it  is  somewhat  incon- 
venient to  reach.  The  first  bishop  (Dr.  Ridding)  was  consecrated  on 
the  feast  of  SS.  Philip  and  James.  18S4.  The  funds  of  this  diocese 
were  very  difficult  to  raise,  but  the  fact  that  the  pence  of  the  poor 
and  the  gold  of  the  rich  were  mingled  to  produce  the  desired  end 
will  help  to  account  for  the  satisfaction  felt  by  Churchmen  in  that 
neighbourhood  at  the  completion  of  so  great  an  enterprise.  The 
history  of  Southwell  Minster  dates  from  •  Old  English/  i.e .  Pre- 
Norman  times.  It  was  founded  to  be  »  home  for  secular  canons  by 
Edga-  the  Pacific,  and  placed  under  the  rule  of  the  archbishops 
of  York,  A.D.  958.  The  nave  and  transepts  were  built  about  1110, 
and  the  rest  of  the  fabric  in  the  13th  century.  From  the  12th  to 
the  16th  century  it  was  accounted  "the  head  mother  church  of  the 
town  and  county  of  Nottingham. 1?  and  for  3uO  years  after  it  was  the 
most  important  of  the  collegiate  churches  refounded  by  Henry  VIII. 

Nothing  is  more  clear  in  modem  church  histoiy  than  the  fact  that 
the  majority  of  English  people  are  devotedly  attached  to  the 
Episcopal  method  of  Church  government ;  and  that  Churchmen  value 
and,  for  the  most  part,  reverence  their  bishops.  They  would  value 
them  more  if  they  saw  them  oftener.  but  to  that  end  we  must  continue 
to  sub-divide  the  dioceses.  At  present  it  is  quite  impossible  for  the 
majority  of  bishops  to  visit  all  the  parishes  in  their  dioceses  under 
two  or  three  years,  and  many  parishes  hardly  ever  see  their  chief 
pastor  at  all.  Only  those  who  travel  much  can  form  any  idea  of  the 
magnitude  of  England's  parochial  system,  e.g. —  In  the  diocese  of 
Norwich  there  are  over  800  resident  incumbents,  some  of  whom  have 
two  or  three  churches  to  look  after.  Were  its  bishop  to  spend  a  day 
in  each  parish,  to  encourage  the  pastor,  confirm  the  young,  and  cheer 
the  old  parishioners,  he  might,  by  working  incessantly  sis  days  a 
week,  perform  the  round  of  the  diocese  in  three  years  !  Were  he  to 
preach  twice  every  Sunday,  at  a  morning  service  in  one  parish  and  at 
some  other  parish  in  the  evening,  when  the  majority  of  the  people 
could  get  to  church  to  listen  to  his  words,  it  would  not  be  possible 
for  him  to  complete  the  tour  in  less  than  nine  years  !  There  used  to 
be,  and  should  be  now,  a  bishop  for  Norfolk  and  another  for  Suffolk  ; 
but  the  comparative  poverty  of  the  district  prevents  the  sub-division. 
Snrely  this  is  a  matter  that  concerns  the  whole  Church.  At  presjnt 
thousands  of  people  iu  East  Anglia  have  never  seen  or  heard  their 
bishop,  and  cannot  therefore  understand  the  usefulness  of  episcopal 
supervision,  although  their  chief  pastor  is  rarely  out  of  his  diocese. 


280 


ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 


10.  The  Diocese  of  Wakefield. — The  most  recent  diocese  of 
the  Victorian  era,  completing  the  intention  of  the  Act  of  1878,  is 
that  of  Wakefield.  Its  formation  was  delayed  because,  owing  to  the 
agricultural  depression  of  the  last  few  years,  many  intending  donors 
to  its  endowment  fund  were  unable  to  fulfil  their  promises  of 
subscription.  Wakefield  has  been  world-renowned  since  Oliver 
Goldsmith  used  its  name  as  a  fictitious  title  for  his  famous  romance  ; 
although  any  other  secluded  country  village,  as  Wakefield  was  in  the 
middle  of  the  18th  century,  would  have  served  his  purpose  just  as 
well.  It  is  now  a  thriving  business  place,  and  the  centre  of  a 
number  of  large  manufacturing  towns.  The  creation  of  the  diocese 
of  which  it  has  been  made  the  episcopal  seat  will  therefore  greatly 

relieve  the  bishop- 

«c  of  nipon,  from 

which  it  was  taken. 
Dr.Walsham  How, 
who  had  previously 
won  golden  opin- 
ions as  a  Suffragan 
bishop  working  iii 
East  London,  \vrts 
appointed  to  be 
the  first  Bishop, 
A.D.  1 888.  Mure 
than  £10,000 
were  raised  by 
the  zeal  and  en- 
terprise of  many 
Yorkshire  ladies, 
to  build  a  suitable 
house  for  the 
bishop  ;  and  the  general  endowment  fund  was  subscribed  by  a 
much  larger  number  of  persons  than  any  modern  diocese.  The 
'  Official  Year  Book '  for  1890  gives  the  following  figures  as  the  amount 
raised  for  endowing  the  several  dioceses  by  voluntary  subscriptions. 
Truro,  £70,948  ;  St.  Albans,  £55,073  ;  Liverpoo1,  £94,676  ;  New- 
castle, £88,866  ;  Southwell,  £65,833 ;  and  Wakefield,  including 
house,  £93.649— Total,.  £469,048. 

Proposals  have  lately  been  made  to  found  a  new  bishopric  for 
Warwickshire,  to  relieve  the  diocese  of  Worcester,  with  the  seat  at 
Birmingham  ;  another  for  Surrey,  to  relieve  the  see  of  Rochester,  of 
which  the  old  priory  church  of  Southwark  should  be  the  cathedral  ; 
a  third  for  Suffolk,  reviving  its  ancient  bishopric  ;  and  two  others  for 
Leicestershire  and  Essex.  But  the  diocese  most  needing  division  is 
that  of  London.  350  years  ago  the  necessity  was  apparent  to 
Cardinal  Wolsey,  and  Westminster  Abbey  was  made  a  cathedral  for 
the  western  part,  St.  Paul's  cathedral  being  confined  to  the  city  and 


WAKEFIELD   CATHEDRAL. 


ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY.  281 

the  Eastern  suburbs.  But  after  the  removal  of  Bishop  Thirlby  to 
Norwich,  in  1550,  the  Westminster  bishopric  lapsed ;  although  its 
capitular  body  still  remains.  Since  that  time  the  population  of 
London  has  quadrupled  itself  twice  over,  and  under  the  care  of  its 
bishop  there  are  now  more  than  3,000,000  souls  !  One  would  think 
that  zeal  and  energy,  coupled  with  a  little  willingness  on  the  part  of 
the  Bishop  of  London  and  the  Dean  of  Westminster  to  sacrifice  some 
of  the  traditions  of  their  respective  positions,  might  make  the 
authorities  in  Church  and  Realm  realise  the  necessity  of  reviving  the 
see  of  Westminster,  so  as  to  give  East  London  a  territorial  bishop  of 
its  own ;  and,  by  consequence,  infuse  new  life  into  many  parishes. 

11.  Suffragan-Bishops.— It  is  natural  to  expect  that  the  Church 
will  be  more  efficiently  administered  when  there  are  more  bishops  to 
control  and  guide  affairs.  With  a  well-disciplined  hierarchy  there 
must  come  a  better  parochial  administration,  and  the  spiritual  life 
of  England  cannot  fail  to  be  increased.  On  the  other  hand,  we  have 
recently  been  warned  "to  keep  our  Christian  groupings  wide  enough 
and  our  centres  strong  enough.  When  every  petty  City  of  Africa 
had  its  bishop  (4th  century)  the  effectiveness  of  the  Episcopate  was 
lowest.  Vigour  and  character  were  not  in  hand  for  so  many  posts  of 
leaders.  Poly-episcopacy  ceased  to  be  episcopacy  when  the  diocese 
became  so  small  a  unit.  The  like  multiplication  in  Italy  converted 
churches  into  cliques,  and  delivered  Italy  over  to  the  one  strong  see, 
and  Europe  followed  the  leading  country.  Half  a  century  with  us 
has  seen  seven  colonial  sees  grow  to  seventy,  and  so  vast  still  is  their 
area  that  another  half  century  will  not  be"  too  long  to  work  out  the 
sub-division.  Yet  the  old  policy  of  England  must  be  nowhere  for- 
gotten, that  sub-division  should  cease  before  dioceses  become  too 
small  for  the  influence  of  each  to  radiate  through  all ;  before  the 
administration  anywhere  becomes  so  narrow  as  to  represent  onJv 
local  patriotism."1  This  is  why  quite  recently,  as  in  the  reign  of 
King  Hecij  VIII..  Suffrafjan-iihlivps  have  been  appointed  to  assist 
in  certain  Home  Dioceses,  and  Coadjutor-Bishops  to  help  in  some 
colonial  sees.  Strictly  speaking  all  bishops  under  a  metropolitan  are 
'  suffragans,'  but  the  term  is  becoming  limited  to  assistant-bishops  who 
have  no  independent  action,  and  who  stand  in  the  same  relation  to 
Diocesans  as  assistant  clergy  do  to  incumbents  of  parishes.  The 
first  suffragan  of  modern  times  was  Dr.  Mackenzie,  consecrated  in 
1870  to  assist  in  the  diocese  of  Lincoln,  with  the  title  of  Bishop  of 
Nottingham.  The  Greek  archbishop  of  Syra  and  Tenos  happened  to 
be  staying  in  England  at  the  time,  and  took  part  in  the  consecration; 
an  act  of  communion  between  the  East  and  West  that  might  with 
advantage  be  repeated.  The  legal  powers  under  which  this^ppoint- 
ment  was  carried  out  were  obtained  by  the  revival  of  an  obsolete  but 

1  From  the  Primate's  opening  sermon  to  the  Lambeth  Conference  of  1388. 


2&2  ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 

unrepealed  Statute  (26  Henry  VIII.,  c.  14),  which  sanctioned 
suffragans  for  certain  sees,  with  specific  titles,  according  to  the 
names  of  towns  mentioned  in  the  act.  Other  overworked  bishops 
took  advantage  of  the  statute,  but  their  suffragans  were  sometimes 
compelled  to  take  very  inappropriate  names  ;  as  when  the  Suffragan 
appointed  to  help  the  bishop  of  London  in  1879  received  the  title 
Bishop  of  Bedford,  with  which  town  or  county  he  had  nothing  what- 
ever to  do  ;  but  an  act  has  lately  (1888)  been  introduced  by  the 
Lord  Chancellor  (Halsbury)  by  which  in  future  the  Crown  in 
Council  may  substitute  the  names  of  more  appropriate  places  to 
designate  the  sphere  of  a  suffragan's  work.  But  the  multiplication 
of  '  curate  bishops,'  though  it  may  relieve  overtaxed  diocesans,  does 
not  altogether  meet  the  requirements  of  overgrown  dioceses.  They 
are  an  irresponsible  body,  without  coercive  jurisdiction,  who  cannot 
of  themselves  initiate  permanent  reforms  ;  and  their  work  may  at 
any  moment  be  interfered  with  or  terminated.  There  are  now  eight 
suffragans  assisting  in  English  dioceses.  There  are  also  many  retired 
colonial  bishops  who  have  resigned  their  sees  for  various  reasons, 
six  of  whom  are  working  as  assistant-bishops  in  certain  English 
dioceses.  Thus  there  are  48  bishops  to  whom  the  clergy  and  laity  of 
England  may  look  for  such  grace  and  guidance  as  flow  from  '  the 
historic  Episcopate.'  At  the  present  time  (1890)  the  total  number  of 
bishops  of  the  Anglican  Communion — in  the  United  Kingdom,  in  our 
Colonial  dependencies  and  missionary  stations,  and  in  the  United 
States — is  two  hundred  and  thirty-five. 

12.  The  Lambeth  Conferences.1 — A  means  has  quite  recently 
been  found  of  binding  together  the  various  offshoots  of  the  British 
Church  in  closer  bonds  of  mutual  affection  and  responsibility.  In 
1865  the  Canadian  Church,  feeling  no  doubt  its  isolation  and  the 
need  of  friendly  intercourse  with  the  Mother-Church  of  England, 
sent  a  synodical  request  to  the  Convocation  of  Canterbury  ;  urging 
the  then  Primate  (Dr.  Longley)  to  adopt  such  means  as  would  enable 
all  members  of  the  Anglican  Communion  "  to  have  a  share  in  the 
deliberations  fpr  her  welfare,  and  be  permitted  to  have  a  representa- 
tion in  one  General  Council  of  her  members  gathered  from  every 
land."  The  result  was  that,  after  careful  deliberation  in  Convoca- 
tion, letters  were  sent  to  the  Home,  Colonial,  and  Missionary 
Bishops,  and  to  the  Bishops  of  the  '  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  of 
America' — 144  bishops  all  together;  inviting  them  to  meet  at 
Lambeth  Palace  in  Sept.,  1867.  Seventy -six  bishops  accepted  the 
invitation,  and  their  meeting  is  known  as  the  First  Lambeth  Con- 
ference. The  assembled  prelates  expressed  deep  sorrow  at  '  the 
divided  condition  of  the  flock  of  Christ  throughout  the  world  ;'  and 
recorded  their  solemn  conviction  that  unity  would  be  most  effectually 

1   Sea    'Origin  and  History  of  the  Lambeth  Conferences,'  S.P  O.K.,  6*.  ;  and 
the  Encyclical  Letter  from  the  bishops  assembled  in  1888,  6rf. 


ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY.  283 

promoted  '  by  maintaining  the  faith  in  its  purity  and  integrity,  as 
taught  in  the  Holy  Scriptures,  held  by  the  primitive  Church,  summed 
up  in  the  Creeds,  and  affirmed  by  the  undisputed  General  Councils  ; 
and  by  drawing  each  of  us  to  our  common  Lord,  by  giving  ourselves 
to  much  prayer  and  intercession,  by  the  cultivation  of  a  spirit  of 
charity,  and  a  love  of  the  Lord's  appearing.'  The  Conference  was 
not  intended  to  partake  of  the  nature  of  a  Synod,  competent  to  enact 
decrees  by  which  the  Church  should  be  bound  ;  but  merely  to  discuss 
matters  of  current  importance,  and  pass  resolutions  which  might 
guide  the  future  action  of  those  in  authority.  As  such  a  conference 
had  never  been  held  before  there  were  no  precedents  as  to  procedure  ; 
consequently  all  that  they  did  was  experimental,  and  far  from 
unanimous  with  respect  to  the  resolutions  ;  but  the  prelates  were  all 
of  one  mind  as  to  the  necessity  of  issuing  a  formal  address  to  all 
faithful  members,  clerical  and  lay.  of  the  Anglican  branch  of  the 
Church  Catholic  ;  by  which  all  were  warned  against  papal  corrup- 
tions of  the  true  faith  revealed  by  the  Scriptures,  exhorted  to  beware 
of  causing  divisions  contrary  to  primitive  Church  doctrine,  and  to 
pray  and  seek  for  unity. 

In  December,  1872,  the  Canadian  Church  again  asked  the  Canter- 
bury Convocation  to  unite  with  it  in  requesting  the  Primate 
(Dr.  Tait)  to  summon  a  second  meeting.  This  was  followed  in  1873 
by  similar  requests  from  the  West  Indian  bishops,  and  in  187-1  by 
the  American  bishops.  But  Archbishop  Tait  did  not  see  his  way  to 
issue  invitations  until  he  had  further  opportunities  of  corresponding 
with  the  Anglican  bishops  throughout  the  world  as  to  the  expediency 
of  a  Conference,  and  the  subjects  to  be  discussed.  173  invitations 
were  sent  out  in  1877.  and  108  bishops  accepted  ;  eight  of  whom, 
however,  were  unable  to  be  present.  On  June  29,  1878,  the  Primate 
welcomed  the  prelates  from  St.  Augustine's  marble  chair  in  Canterbury 
Cathedral,  which  had  been  placed  on  the  altar-steps ;  but  the 
sessions  were  held  in  the  great  library  of  Lambeth  Palace.  In  this 
Second  Lambeth  C^nfen-nce  the  same  rule  was  enforced  as  at  the 
first :  that  the  discussions  should  not  encroach  upon  doctrinal 
matters  or  questions  of  discipline,  with  the  view  of  issuing  authori- 
tative decrees ;  lest  it  should  seem  that  the  Conference  claimed  a 
power  to  interfere  with  the  autonomy  of  the  Colonial  and  American 
Churches.  Brotherly  intercourse,  with  mutual  help  and  comfort, 
were  the  chief  objects ;  and  the  discussions  were  limited  to  such 
subjects  as  bore  upon  unity  and  inter-communion.  As  before, 
the  conclusions  arrived  at,  after  many  days  of  serious  deliberation, 
were  published  in  a  letter  addressed  to  the  Faithful  ;  in  which  the 
reports  of  the  committees  appointed  to  consider  the  different  subjects 
were  embodied.  The  Conference  of  1878  concluded  with  a  grand 
service  in  St.  Paul's  Cathedral,  when  the  Bishop  of  Pennsylvania 
preached  the  sermon ;  in  which  he  said  : — "  Never  before  have  all 
branches  of  the  Anglican  Communion  been  so  fully  represented  in 


284 


ILLUSTRATED  NOTES  ON 


an  ecclesiastical  assembly.  Such  a  gathering  converges  to  itself  the 
eyes  of  the  thinking  world,  and  such  a  gathering  must  radiate  from 
itself  a  power  for  weal  or  woe  that  shall  reach  to  the  distant  ages. 
We  met  as  standard-bearers  of  the  Cross  of  Christ  ;  and  we  separate 
to  go  back  to  our  dioceses  more  impressed  than  ever,  that  it  is  in  and 
through  an  uplifted  Christ — faithfully  held  up  and  fully  displayed — • 
that  our  work  can  be  accomplished  ;  and  that  all  men — men  of  all 
races,  all  climes,  all  countries — can  be  brought  to  the  feet  of  the 
Crucified,  and  to  the  Church  which  is  His  body." 


LAMBETH   PALACE. 

So  beneficial  to  the  welfare  of  the  Church  did  these  Conferences 
prove  that  they  are  likely  to  recur  every  ten  years.  A  still  more 
numerously  attended  one  was  held  at  the  same  place  in  1888  under 
the,  present  Primate  (_Dr.  Benson),  which  will  be  known  in  history  as 
the  Third  Lambeth  Conference.  209  letters  of  invitation  were  sent 
out,  and  145  bishops  responded  by  their  presence  ;'  who  came 
literally  'from  the  ends  of  the  earth.'  The  methods  of  procedure 
followed  the  precedents  established  in  1867  and  1878,  but  were  of  a 
much  more  important  character.  The  published  Encyclical,  or  Letter 
to  the  Faithful,  shews  that  these  Conferences  are  likely  to  become  a 
means  of  directing  the  practical  work  of  the  Church  from  time  to 
time.  The  conclusions  arrived  at  by  the  Conference  from  the  reso- 
lutions of  its  special  committees,  relate  to  morality,  social  problems, 

1  The  retired  Colonial  bishops,  having  no  official  oversight  of  churches  or 
permanent  episcopal  work,  were  not  invited  to  the  Conference. 


ENGLISH  CHURCH  HISTORY. 

administration,  mutual  relations,  and  the  unity  of  Christendom.  In 
grave  and  dignified  terms  the  prelates  have  rebuked  the  flagrant 
gins  of  intemperance  and  impurity  which  defile  all  nations  ;  upheld 
the  sanctity  and  inviolability  of  marriage  ;  and  asserted  the  sacred 
character  of  the  Lord's  Day.  now  so  often  disregarded.  So  important 
are  these  official  utterances  that  every  Churchman  should  purchase 
and  study  with  care  the  pamphlet  in  which  they  are  set  forth. 
We  have  only  room  here  for  the  statements  relating  to  the  question 
of  Home  JRennion.  The  special  committee  laid  down  four  articles  as 
the  bases  on  which  approaches  might  be  made.towards  the  desired  end. 

"  (A)  The  Holy  Scriptures  of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments,  as  '  containing  all 
things  necessa-y  to  salvation,'  and  as  being  the  rule  and  ultimate  standard  of  faith. 

"  (B)  The  Apostles'  Creed,  as  the  baptismal  synbol ;  ani  the  Nicene  Creed,  as  the 
sufficient  statement  of  the  Christian  faith, 

"  (C)  The  two  Sacraments  ordained  by  Christ  Himself — Baptism  and  the  Supper 
of  the  Lord— miaistere.l  with  unfailing  use  of  Christ's  words  of  Institution  and  of 
the  elements  ordained  by  Him. 

"  (D)  The  Historic  Episcopate,  locally  adapte-i  hi  the  methods  of  its  administra- 
tion to  the  var—Iug  needs  of  the  nations  and  peoples  called  of  God  into  the  Unity  of 
His  Church." 

After  anxious  discussion  upon  these  articles  the  general  body  of 
Bishops  arrived  at  the  following  conclusions  : — 

"  The  attitude  of  the  Anglican  communion  towards  the  religions  bodies  now 
separated  from  it  by  unhappy  divisions  would  appear  to  be  this  :— We  hold  onr- 
selres  in  readiness  to  enter  into  brotherly  conference  with  any  of  those  who  may 
desire  intercommunion  with  us  in  a  more  or  less  perfect  form.  We  lay  down 
conditions  on  which  such  intercommunion  is.  in  our  opinion,  and  according  to  onr 
conviction,  possible.  For.  however  we  may  long  to  embrace  those  now  alienated 
from  us,  so  that  the  ideal  of  the  one  flock  under  the  one  Shepherd  may  be  realised, 
we  must  not  be  unfaithful  stewards  of  the  great  deposit  intrusted  to  us.  We 
cannot  defer:  x;r  position  either  as  to  faith  or  discipline.  That  concord  would,  in 
our  judgment,  be  neither  true  nor  desirable  which  should  be  produced  by  such 
surrender. 

"  But  we  gla-lly  and  thankfully  recognise  the  real  religious  work  which  is  carried 
on  by  Christian  bodies  not  of  onr  communion.  We  cannot  close  our  eyes  to  the 
visible  blessing  which  has  been  vouchsafed  to  their  labours  for  Christ's  sake.  Let 
us  not  be  misunderstood  on  this  point.  We  are  not  insensible  to  the  strong  ties, 
the  rooted  convictions,  which  attach  them  to  their  present  position.  These  we 
respect,  as  we  wish  that  on  our  side  our  own  principles  and  feelings  may  be 
respected.  Competent  observers,  indeed,  assert  that  not  in  England  only,  but  in 
all  parts  of  the  Christian  world,  there  is  a  real  yearning  for  unity — that  men's 
hearts  are  moved  more  than  heretofore  towards  Christian  fellowship.  The  confer- 
ence has  showri  in  its  discussions  as  well  as  its  resolutions  that  it  if  deeply  penetrated 
with  this  feeling.  May  the  Spirit  of  Love  move  on  the  troubled  waters  of  religi 
differences.'' 


286  ILL  USTRA  TED  NO  TES. 

13.  Conclusion. — With  such  noble  words  we  might  well  bring 
this  little  book  to  a  period  ;  but  there  is  one  important  consideration 
which  the  writer  desires  should  be  his  final  word.  Because  we 
rejoice  at  the  extension  of  our  Church's  work  abroad,  so  that  the 
sun  never  sets  upon  her  daughter  churches,  it  is  all  the  more  neces- 
sary that  we  should  make  up  our  minds  not  to  allow  the  parent  stem 
to  be  injured.  It  is  of  the  national  religion  in  England  and  Wales 
that  we  have  been  thinking  mainly  ;  a  religion  which  we  have 
inherited  from  the  earliest  times,  which  has  been  bound  up  with  the 
national  character,  has  sympathized  with  all  its  joys  and  sorrows, 
and  has  also  reaped  in  return  for  its  spiritual  sowing  and  nurture 
a  measure  of  temporal  prosperity.  We  know  full  well  that  those 
who  envy  her  goodly  heritage  are  many  and  resolute  ;  but  that 
knowledge  should  make  us  all  the  more  determined  to  hold  fast  that 
which  has  been  committed  to  our  care  and  keeping.  We  must  do 
this,  not  for  our  own  sake  only,  but  for  the  sake  of  the  encourage- 
ment which  we  owe  to  our  brethren  beyond  the  seas,  and  to  the 
missionaries  who  are  bravely  reducing  heathen  lands  to  the  obedience 
of  Christ  our  King  ;  and  for  the  sake  of  future  generations,  for 
whom  we  are  trustees.  Twelve  hundred  years  ago,  when  many 
petty  princes  were  struggling  for  the  territory  now  called  England 
and  Wales,  the  early  missionaries  laboured  to  unite  the  tribes  from 
which  we  sprang  in  bonds  of  peace  and  love  through  the  "  One  Lord, 
one  Faith,  one  Baptism  ;  one  God  and  Father  of  us  all."  After  they 
had  succeeded,  the  united  religious  society  so  founded  became  an 
united  state  and  kingdom  ;  since  which  time  the  religious  and  civil 
organizations  have  been  identical,  while  patriotic  and  spiritual 
aspirations  have  gone  hand-in-hand.  The  union  was  not  of  man's 
making  or  seeking,  nor  was  it  of  sudden  growth.  It  came  about  by 
the  inspiration  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  it  has  been  maintained  by 
Divine  favour  for  the  supply  of  mutual  necessities.  From  the  union 
there  have  sprung  many  generations  of  Englishmen  who  have 
become  good  citizens  because  they  were  early  trained  in  the  fear 
and  nurture  of  the  Lord  ;  and  through  their  lives  and  work  at  home 
and  abroad  the  world  has  learned  to  respect  '  Christian  England.' 
If  there  were  any  fault  or  offence,  any  evidence  of  unfaithfulness, 
the  Realm  would  be  within  its  right  in  claiming  a  divorce  ;  but  so 
long  as  the  Church  is  true,  even  though  her  consort  may  not  be  true 
to  her,  it  must  be  said,  as  we  say  of  domestic  unions  : — '  Those  whom 
God  has  joined  together,  let  not  man  put  asunder  ; '  whils  the  watch- 
word of  all  true  sons  and  daughters  of  the  union  must  be 

'QUIS   SEPARABITT 


CHRONOLOGY 

OF 

CHIEF  EVENTS   REFERRED  TO  IN  THE  SECOND  VOLUME. 


A.I>.  PACK 

1377-1399.  Richard  II. 

1338-1453.  Wars  with  France— "Hundred  Years' War"      .         .  2 

1390.  Statutes  of  Provisvrs  re-enacted 8 

1393.  The  Statute  of  Prcemunire  re-enacted        ....  8 

1395.  Lollards  plead  for  Church  Reform 6 

1399-1413.  Henry  IV. 

1401.  Statute  "  De  Heret ico  Comburendo" — William  Sawtry  burnt  6 

Hi.i4  &  1410.    Commons   propose  to  confiscate  Church  property  7 
1413-1422.  Henry  V. 

1414.  Alien  Priories  suppressed  by  King 15 

1414-18  Council  of  Constance.     Huss  and  Jerome  burnt              .  10 

1417-18  Pope  Martin  V. "  provides  "  thirteen  bishops  for  England  9 
1422-1461.  Henry  VI. 

1426.  Papal   Bulls  to   suspend   Chichele   seized  by  Government  9 
1428.  Wycliffe's  bones  exhumed  and  burnt            .         .         .         .12 

1437.  All  Souls'  College,  Oxford,  founded  by  Chichele           .         .  16 

1440.  King's  and  Queen's  Colleges  at  Cambridge  founded    .         .  16 

1449.  Commons  attempt  to  tax  the  clergy    .....  8 

1455-1485.  Wars  of  the  Roses 18 

1457.  Condemnation  of  Bishop  Pecock.         .         .         .         .         .12 

1461-1483.  Edward  IV. 

1473.  Caxton  begins  to  print  at  Westminster       .         .         .         .17 

1483-1485.  Richard  III.  (Edward  V.  reigned  two  months) 

14S5.  Battle  of  Bosworth  Field 19 

1485-1509.  Henry  VII. 

1498.  Martyrdom  of  Savonarola 20 

1503.  Wareham  Archbishop  of  Canterbury            ....  21 

1509-1547.  Henry  VIII. 

1512.  Dean  Colet  advocates  Church  reform           ....  23 

151 5.  Wolsey  becomes  Lord  Chancellor         .                  ...  24 

1516.  Erasmus  publishes  Greek  Testament            ....  24 
Revised  Breviary  published          ......  39 

1517.  Wolsey  permitted  to  be  Papal  Legate.         ....  24 

1520.  Martin  Luther  burns  Papal  Bull  at  Wittenberg  ...  35 

1521.  King  Henry's  book  against  Luther 35 


288  CHRONOLOGICAL    TABLE. 

A.D.  PAliK 

1523.  Wolsey,  as  Legate,  suppresses  many  monasteries         .         .  '..'•"> 

1526.  Tyndale's  New  Testament  published  .....  .">7 

1527.  Negotiations  commenced  for  Henry's  divorce       ...  27 

1529.  Queen  Catharine  appeals  to  Rome 28 

„      Sir  T.   More  succeeds  Wolsey  as  Chancellor        .         .         .26 

1530.  Cranmer  pleads  the  King's  cause  at  Home           .         .         .  -!• 

1531.  Convocation,  threatened  with  Prccmunire,  proposes  liuiita- 1  01 

tions  of  Papal  authority  and  accepts  Royal  Supremacy  ( 

1532.  Appeals  to  Rome  forbidden  by  Statute  (24  Hen.  VIII.  c.  12) 

1533.  Archbishop  Cranmer  pronounces  the  King's  divorce   .         .  29 

1534.  Convocation  declares  agaiust  papal  jurisdiction           .         .  30 
,,      Statute,  25  Hen.  VIIL,  c.  19,  embodied  the  Submission  of 

Clergy  Convocation  had  made  iu  1531          .         .         .  34 
„      Payment  of  first-fruits  to  Rome  forbidden           .         .         .30 

„      Statute,  25  Hen.  VIII.,  c.  21,  forbade  issue  of  Papal  Bulls  30 

„      Convocation  pleads  for  translation  of  Bible         ...  37 

1535.  Thomas  Cromwell  made  Vicar-General         ....  51 

„      Coverdale's  Bible  published         ......  38 

„      More  and  Fisher  beheaded  for  denying  Royal  Supremacy    .  33 

1536.  Bible  set  up  in  Churches 38 

„      The  Ten  Articles  issued  by  Convocation      ....  40 
„      Dissolution  of  small  Monasteries  and  Friaries      .         .         .46 

1537.  "  Institution  of  a  Christian  Man  "  published   ...  40 
„      Pope's  authority  condemned  (28  Hen.  VIIL,  c.  10)           .  30 
„      Matthews'  Bible  published 38 

1538.  Negotiations  with  Lutheran  Divines 36 

„      Surrender  of  many  Greater  Monasteries      .         .         .         .49 

1539.  Pope  interdicts  England  and  excommunicates  Henry         .  33 
„      New  Bishoprics  Act.  (31  Hen.  VIIL,  c.  9)    .         .         .         .49 
,,      Remaining  Monasteries  Dissolved  (31  Hen.  VIIL,  c.  13)      .  49 

„      Cranmer's  Great  Bible  published 38 

„      The  Six  Articles'  Statute  accepted  by  Convocation      .         .  41 

1540.  Thomas  Cromwell  beheaded          .         .  .         .         .52 

1541.  Dioceses  of  Chester,  Gloucester  and  Peterborough  founded  54 

1542.  Convocation  ordered  lessons  to  be  read  in  English      .         .  39 
„      Convocation  appointed  Committee  to  revise  Liturgy.         .  39 

1543.  English  Litany  published  for  use  in  public  worship  .         .  39 

1545.  (Dec.  13)  First  Meeting  of  Council  of  Trent        ...  91 

1546.  Chantries  and  University  Endowments  granted   to    King  60 
1547-53.  Edward  VI. 

1547.  Episcopal  Jurisdiction  licensed  by  the  Crown      ...  62 
„      "  Royal  Visitation  "  of  the  Church               ....  63 
,,      Convocation  annuls  Canons  against  Clerical  Matrimony      .  69 

1548.  Election  of  Bishops  superseded  by  "  Letters  Patent     .         .  68 

„      First  English  Communion  Office 66 

„      Foreign  reformers  invited  by  Cranmer         ....  69 

1549.  First  Prayer  Book  of  Edward  VI. 's  reign  authorised  .         .  66 


CHRONOLOGICAL     TABLE.  2>l> 

A.D.  FACE 

1549.  Second  Royal  Visitation                .                           ...  67 
Two  Anabaptists  burnt  for  blasphemy  by  Cramaer's  advice  i.'>'j 

1550.  Reformed  Ordinal  completed 08 

,,      Altars  removed  from  East  end  of  Chinx-h*:.-          .         .          .71 

Six  Bishops  deprived  and  imprisoned  by  the  Council  .          .  io 

1551.  Hooper  imprisoned  for  objecting  to  Vestments    .         .         .  61) 
l.V>2.  Second  Prayer  Book  of  Edward  VI.'s  reign  authorised        .  71 
1553.  Forty-two  Articles  of  Religion  published     ....  90 
1553.  Futile  attempt  to  make  Lady  Jane  Grey  Queen  of  England  72 
1553-58.  Mary  Tudor. 

1553.  Imprisoned  Bishops  released.     Gardiner  made  Chancellor  74 
„      Flight  of  clergy  and  refugees     .         .         .         .         .         .73 

„      Edwardian  Bishops  deposed,  imprisoned,  and  superseded    .  72 
,,      Religious  laws  of  Edward  repealed      .         .         .         .         .74 

1554.  Wyatt's  rebellion  and  execution  of  Lady  Jane           .         .  74 
„      Mary  marries  Philip  II.  of  Spain,  (July)     ....  76 
,,      Cardinal  Pole  appointed  Papal  Legate,  (November)     .         .  76 
„      Parliament  and  Convocation  reconciled  with  Rome     .          .  76 
,,      Anti-Papal  Statutes  since  1529  repealed      ....  76 

1555.  The  Marian  Persecutions  begin.    Four  Bishops  burnt           .  77 

1556.  Cranmer  burnt  for  heresy  and  succeeded  by  Pole      .         .  79 

1557.  Cardinal  Pole's  Visitation  of  the  Universities       ...  81 

1558.  (Nov.  17).  Deaths  of  Queen  Mary  and  Cardinal  Pole  .         .  81 
1558-1603.  Elizabeth. 

„      Return  of  the  Exiles 82 

1559.  Royal  Supremacy  and  English  Liturgy  revived  .         .         .83 
,,      Act  of  uniformity  (1  Eliz.,  c.  2)  enforcing  Liturgy      .          .  84 
„      Deprivation  of  Marian  Bishops  (May  to  November)     .         .  85 
,,      Consecration  of  Parker  and  other  Bishops  (December) 

1560.  Eliiabeth  aids  the  Scotch  Reformers  .         .         .         .         .108 
„      Pope  offers  to  sanction  Reformation  if  he  may  be  supreme  93 

1561.  Severe  Acts  passed  against  Romanists          ....  93 

1562.  Jewel's  Apology  published 91 

1563.  Thirty-eight  Articles  issued  by  Convocation,  many  Puritan 

clergy  refuse  to  subscribe  them  and  leave  the  Church    .  90 

„      (Nov.  11).  Last  Meeting  of  Council  of  Trent       ...  92 

1567.  Dutch  religious  refugees  settle  in  eight  English  towns         .  94 

1568.  First  Dissenting  Community  (Congregational)  founded      .  95 
„      Parker's  Bible  published      .......  91 

1569.  Insurrection  in  North  on  behalf  of  Queen  of  Scots       .         .  98 

1570.  Pius  V.  incites  English  to  disloyalty,  and  excommunicates 

Elizabeth.     Romanists  become  a  •'                   -t          .         .  93 

1571.  Severe  laws  passed  against  Romanists  and  Papal  Bulls         .  93 
Members   of    Parliament   propose   alterations   in  Religion  96 

1572.  First  Presbyterian  Congregation  in  England  (Cartwright's)  96 
„      Massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew 94 

1577.  Archbishop Grindal  suspended  for  encouraging  Prophesyiugs  96 


290  CHRONOLOGICAL    TABLE. 

A.D.  PAGE 

1580.  Jesuits  come  to  "  convert "  England 94 

1583.  High  Commission  Court  established 97 

1584.  Richard  Hooker  appointed  to  Mastership  of  the  Temple      .       98 

1586.  The  Babington  Conspiracy 98 

1587.  Execution  of  Mary  Queen  of  Scots 98 

„      Martin  Mar-Prelate  libels  published 97 

„      Sixtus  V.  sanctions  hostilities  against  Elizabeth  ...  99 

1588.  (July)  Destruction  of  Spanish  Armada        ....  101 

1592.  Presbyterianism  established  in  Scotland      ....  108 

1593.  Penal  Statutes  against  Romanists  and  Nonconformists        .  101 

1595.  The  Lambeth  Articles  published 98 

1600.  An  East  India  Company  formed                   .        .        .        .  103 
1603-25.  James  I. 

1603.  Millenary  Petition 110 

1604.  Hampton  Court  Conference Ill 

,,      Canons  Ecclesiastical  published Ill 

1605.  Gunpowder  Treason  Plot  discovered 113 

1606.  Statutes  against  Romanists 114 

1608.  First  Permanent  Settlement  in  America      ....     117 

1610.  Scotch  Episcopate  restored 114 

1611.  The,  Authorised  Version  of  the  Bible  published    .         .         .115 

1612.  Legate  and  Wightman  burnt  by  Abp.  Abbott's  advice         .     119 

1618.  Book  of  Sunday  Sports  published 128 

1623.  Titular  Bishops  sent  to  England  by  the  Pope       .         .         .121 
1625-28.  Montague  and  others  censured  in  Parliament         .         .     123 
1625-49.  Charles  I. 

1628.  The  Petition  of  Right .124 

„      Parliament  resolves  itself  into  a  Committee  of  Religion  .     1 25 

1629.  Parliament  attacks  unauthorised  taxes  and  is  dissolved  .     125 

1630.  Laud  and  Strafford  become  the  King's  chief  advisers  .     126 
„      Dr.  Leighton  pilloried  for  writing  against  Episcopacy.  .     128 

1633—6.  Archbishop  Laud  enforces  discipline                  •         .  .     127 

1637.  Severe  proceedings  against  Puritans  in  Star  Chamber  .     128 
„  Hampden's  Trial  for  resisting  Ship  money  tax     .         .  .     126 
,,  The  Scotch  resist  Laud's  Liturgy  and  Canons      .         .  .130 

1638.  Solemn  League  and  Covenant  signed  in  Scotland  .        .  .     131 

1639.  Scotch  abolish  Episcopacy  and  prepare  for  War           .  .     131 

1640.  Convocation  sat  as  a  Synod  after  Dissolution  of  Parliament     132 
„  (Nov.  3)  First  meeting  of  The  Long  Parliament          .  .132 
„  Impeachment  of  Strafford  and  Laud  .         .         • 

,,      Parliamentary  Committee  appointed  to  deprive  the  clergy 

1641.  High  Commission  Court  abolished                                 •  134 

„      The  Grand  Remonstrance l-"*4 

„      Episcopacy  suspended — Root  and  Branch  Bill,  1642-3         .  '. 

1642.  Civil  War  begins  at  Nottingham  (August).                  .         .  134 

1643.  Westminster  Assembly  convoked  to  advise  Long  Parliament     140 
The  Covenant  enforced  in  return  for  Scotch  alliance  .         .     135 


CHR  ONOL  0  GICA  L    TA  BLE.  291 

A.D.  PAG» 

1545.  (Jan.  10)   Execution  of  Archbishop  Laud    ....  140 

„      Directory  substituted  for  proscribed  Liturgy       .         .         .  140 

„      Charles  I.  declines  to  'establish'  Presbyterianism       .         .  142 

,,      "  New  Model  "  Army  organised  by  Oliver  Cromwell  .         .  142 

Profanation  of  Cathedrals  and  Churches  by  Puritan  soldiers  150 

1646.  King  surrenders  to  the  Scots,  who  sell  him  to  Parliament  .  142 
King  refuses  to  sanction  abolition  of  Episcopacy         .         .142 

1647.  The  Army  seize  the  King  (June  4) 142 

„      The  King  escapes  to  Carisbrook 143 

1648.  Presbyterians  take  up  arms  for  the  King,  but  are  defeated.  143 
.,      The  King  in  despair  agrees  to  proposals  of  Parliament        .  143 
,,      Col.  Pride  expels  Presbyterians  from  Parliament  (Dec.  6)  .  143 

1649.  Execution  of  Charles  I."  (January  30) 144 

1649-85.  Charles  II.     (In  exile  until  1660). 

1649.  (February)  The  'Rump'  abolishes  House  of  Lords,  pro- 

hibits Monarchy,  and  issues  Declaration  on  Religion  .  146 
„  The  Engagement  substituted  for  the  Covenant  .  .  .147 
„  (May  19)  The  Commonwealth  proclaimed  ....  146 

1650.  Quakers  come  into  notice  as  a  sect 148 

1651.  Battle  of  Worcester  and  flight  of  Charles  II.        .         .         .149 

1653.  The  '  Rump  '  orders  the  demolition  of  Churches         .        .152 
„  Cromwell  expels  the  '  Rump '  and  nominates  a  Parliament      153 
„  (Dec.  16)  Cromwell  made  Lord  Protector  ....     154 

1654.  (March  20)  Triers  appointed  to  administer  patronage          .     156 
,,  (Aug.  20)  Commission  to  inquire  into  character  of  clergy  .     156 
,,  (Sept.  3)  First  Protectorate  Parliament  met        .         .         .154 

1655.  (Nov.  27)  Cromwell's  Persecuting  Edict  issued  .         .         .     157 

1656.  Second  Protectorate  Parliament.  Cromwell  refuses  the  crown  155 

1658.  Inauguration  of  Cromwell's  House  of  Lords        .         .         .  156 
„      (Sept  3)  Death  of  Cromwell  and  accession  of  his  son  Richard  160 

1659.  Army  restores  the  "  Rump  "  Parliament      ....  160 

1660.  General  Monk  declares  for  a  free  Parliament  (Jan.  3)           .  161 
„      The  Declaration  from  Breda  (April  14)        ....  161 
,,      (March  16)  The  Long  Parliament  issues  orders  fora  <: Con- 
vention." and  agrees  to  its  own  dissolution      .         .         .  161 

„     (May   1)  Convention  invites  Charles  II.  to  return        .         .     161 

1660.  Restoration  of  Charles  II.  and  the  Chnrch. 

„  Many  Clergy  return  to  their  Benefices.     Juxon  Primate     .  162 

1661.  The  Savoy  Conference — Revision  of  the  Liturgy          .         .  163 
„  Episcopacy  revived  in  Scotland 173 

1662.  Act  of  Uniformity.      (Aug.  24)  Nonconformists  deprived  .  166 

1663.  Convocation  grants  subsidy  for  the  last  time       ...         8 
1664  and  1670.  Conventicle  Act  forbids  Nonconformist  meetings      167 

1665.  Five  Mile  Act  forbids  Ministers  settling  near  towns    .         .     167 
„  Great  Plague  in  London 169 

1666.  Great  Fire  of  London  (September  2-6)        .        .        .        .170 
„  Irish  Act  of  Uniformity 178 


292  CHRONOLOGICAL     TABLE, 

A.D.  PAGE 

1668.  Failure  of  Comprehension  Scheme 168 

1670  &  1678.  Secret  Treaties  between  Charles  I.  and  France       .     175 

1672.  Duke  of  York  received  into  Church  of  Rome   .    x  •         .174 

1673.  The  Test  Act  passed  to  exclude  Romanists  from  office         .     174 
I'iTf).  Rebuilding  of  St.  Paul's  Cathedral  commenced    .         .         .     173 

1677.  Mary,  Duke  of  York's  daughter,  marries  Prince  of  Orange        175 

1678.  The  Popish  Plots. — Harsh  treatment  of  Romanists     .         .     175 
,,      Act  disabling  Romanists  from  sitting  in  Parliament     .         .175 

1679.  Scotch  Puritans  murder  Archbishop  Sharp         .          .         .173 

1680.  Failure  of  attempt  to  exclude  Duke  of  York  from  Throne  .     176 
,,      Commons  refusing  to  vote  subsidies,  Parliament  is  dissolved     176 

1681.  Charles  proposes  Prince  of  Orange  as  Regent  to  James        .     176 
,,      King  of  France  subsidises  Charles  II.         ....     177 

1685-1683.  James  II. 

1685.  The  new  King  promises  to  maintain  the  National  Church  .     179 
„      Richard  Baxter's  trial  before  Judge  Jeffries          .  180 
„      Revocation  of  Edict  of  Nantes 183 

1686.  Judges  decide  in  favour  of  "Dispensing  Power"  (June)      .     181 
,,      Court  of  High  Commission  re-established  (July)          .         .     181 
,,      Chapels  Royal  opened  for  Romanist  worship        .         .         .181 
„      Massey,  a  Romanist,  made  dean  of  Christchurch,  Oxford     .     182 
,,      Camp  formed  at  Hounslow  to  overawe  London   .         .         .189 

1687.  Revived  High  Commission  attacks  the  Universities     .         .     183 
„      (April)  Declaration  of  Indulgence  published         .         .         .184 
,,      Fellows  of  Magdalen  College  replaced  by  Romanists   .         .183 

1688.  (May  4)  James  I .  orders  clergy  to  read  Declaration  on  May  20    1 84 
„      (May  1 8)  Seven  Bishops  petition  against  it          .         .         .     185 
„      (June  8)  The  seven  Bishops  sent  to  the  Tower  for  libel       .     186 
,,      (June  30)  Trial  and  acquittal  of  the  seven  Bishops     .         .     187 
,,      (June  30)  Prince  of  Orange  invited  to  England  .         .         .     189 

(Sep.  30)  William  of  Orange  issues  his  Declaration     .         .  189 
(October)  New  Commission  dissolved,  Romanists  removed 

from   Privy  Council,  and  Fellows  restored  to  Magdalen  189 

„      (Nov.  5)  William,  Prince  of  Orange,  lauds  at  Torbay  .         .  190 

,,      (Dec.  19)  William  arrives  in  London          ....  191 

„      (Dec.  23-)  James  II.  leaves  England     .         .         .         .         _  191 

1689.  (Jan.  22)  Declaration  of  Right 191 

,,      Seven  Bishops  and  JOO  clergy  refuse  Allegiance  to  William  192 

1689-1702.  William  III.  (and  Mary). 

]  689.  The  Toleration  Act  passed 1 97 

,,  (Oct.)  Throne  barred  to  Romanists  by  new  Bill  of  Rights  .  195 

,,  Attempt  to  remodel  the  Liturgy  by  Parliament  averted  .  197 

1697.  Choir  of  St.  Paul's  Cathedral  opened  for  Worship       .         .  208 
1691.  Battle  of  the  Boyne 191 

1698.  Society  for  Promoting  Christian  Knowledge,  founded          .  198 
1701.  Act  of  Settlement  receives  the  Royal  Assent       .         .         .  196 

,,      Society  for  Propagating  the  Gospel,  founded        .         .         .     201 


CHRONOLOGICAL    TABLE.  293 


A.D. 

1702-14.  Queen  Anne. 

1702.  Scotch  Parliament  re-establishes  Presbyterianistn        .         .     202 
1704.  Queen  Anne  restores  First-fruits  to  the  Church 

Unitarians  become  a  distinct  body      .....     216 
Union  of  England  and  Scotland  ..... 

1710.  Sacheverell's  impeachment  ...... 

.,      St.  Paul's  Cathedral  completed  ...... 

1711.  Occasional  Conformity  forbidden  by  Statute 

1714.  Schism   Act   forbade  unlicensed   Nonconformists    School.-- 
1714-27.  George  I. 

1717.  Bishop  Hoadley's  writings  considered  by  Convocation          .     212 
„      Convocation  silenced  by  Annual  Prorogation  untL  "  -  213 

1719.  ;  Occasional  Conformity'  and  'Schism'  Acts  repealed  .         .     209 
1722.  Parliamentary  grants  to  English  Dissenters         .         .         .     229 
1727-60.  George"  II. 
1728.  Act  of  Indemnity  (annual)  relieves  Dissenters  from  ce: 

provisions  of  Test  and  Corporation  Acts  .         .         .         .231 
1736.  Bishop  Butler's  Analogy  published       ..... 
1739.  Wesley  develops  his  Society         ..... 
1760-1830.  George  III. 

1760.  Methodists  begin  to  administer  Sacraments 
1776.  The  historian  Gibbon  attacks  Christianity  . 

Sir  George  Saville  passes  Romanist  Relief  Bill     .         .         .     233 

1779.  Dissenting  Ministers  and  Schoolmasters  relieve;" 

scription  to  XXXIX.  Articles  ......     231 

1780.  Lord  George  Gordon  "  No  Popery  "  riots     ....     234 

1781.  Lady  Huntingdon's  Connexion  registered    .... 

1783.  American  Independence  acknowledged  by  England     . 

1784.  Consecration  of  Bishop  Seabury  for  America 

1787  &  1789.  'Test'  and  'Corporation'  Acts  Repeal  Bill  rejected  .     231 
First  Colonial  Bishop  Consecrated       .....     270 

1789.  The  French  Revolution        ....... 

1793.  Bishopric  of  Quebec  founded        ...... 

Wilberforce  attempts  to  promote  Christian  teaching  in  India 
The  Wesleyan  Schism  ........ 

1799.    ktiigious  Tract  Society  founded  ...... 

•  !mrch  Missionary  Society  founded    .         .  .          .     22$ 

1801.  Union  of  England  and  Ireland  (Nations  and  Church- 

1804.  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society  founded  .         .         .     22$ 

1807.  \Vilberforce  passes  Slave  Trade  Abolition  Bill      .         .         .     226 

1811.  National  Society  founded    .......     2.")  5 

1812.  Dissenting  Ministers  relieved  from  further  penalties    .         .     232 

1813.  Unitarians  relieved  from  some  of  their  disabilities       .         .     232 

1814.  First  Bishop  of  Calcutta      .......     271 

1815.  Battle  of  Waterloo       ........ 

1?17    i;     uanists  admitted  into  Army  and  Navy  .... 

1818.  Parliamentary  grant  of  £1,000,000  towards  new  churches.  .     229 


294  CHRONOLOGICAL    TABLE 

A.D.  PARK 

1818.  Church  Building  Society  founded 230 

1820-1830   George  IV.    ' 

1824.  Parliamentary  grant  of  £500,000  for  Church  Building         .  229 

1827.  The  Christian  Year  published 252 

1828.  Test  and  Corporation  Acts  repealed 232 

1829.  Romanist  Relief  Bill  passed.     It  was  rejected  in  1825          ,  234 
1830-1837.  William  IV. 

1831.  Foundation  of  King's  College,  London         ....  261 

1832.  Commission  appointed  to  inquire  into  Church  revenues      .  ?41 
,,      University  of  Durham  founded  ......  261 

1833.  Quakers,  &c.,  allowed  to  substitute  Affirmation  for  Oath    .  236 
„      Jewish  Relief  Bill  rejected  by  Lords  (also  in  1848  &  1853)  237 
„      Irish  Church  Temporalities  Act.     10  Bishoprics  suppressed  238 

\,,      £1,000,000  lent  to  Irish  Clergy  in  lieu  of  tithe  arrears         .  239 

„      Compensation  of  £20,000,000  to  Colonial  slave  owners        .  227 
„      Parliament  granted  £20,000  yearly  for  Elementary  Education  255 

„      Tractarian  Movement  began         .         .         .         .         .         .  252 

1834.  Rejection  of  Bill  to  relieve  Bishops  from  legislative  and 

judicial  functions 243 

1836.  Ecclesiastical  Commission  permanently  Incorporated.         .  241 
„      Tithe  Commutation  Bill  passed  (6  and  7,  Wm.  IV.,  c.  71)  242 
„      Nonconformists  allowed  to  have  marriages  in  chapels .         .  232 
„      Diocese  of  Bristol  suppressed  and  Diocese  of  Ripon  founded  272 
„      First  Bishop  for  Australia  consecrated         .         .         .         .271 

1837.  Accession  of  Queen  Victoria. 

1839.  Elementary  Education  Commission  appointed     .         .         .  255 

1840.  Church  Discipline  Act  passed  (3  and  4  Viet.,  c.  86)            .  245 

1843.  Secession  from  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Scotland  .         .  204 

1844.  Liberation  Society  founded 232 

1845.  Maynooth  Grant  permanently  established            .         .         .  239 
,,      (Oct.)  Dr.  Newman  joins  the  Romanists      ....  253 

1847.  Opposition  against  amalgamation  of  Welsh  dioceses  .         .  273 

„      Diocese  of  Manchester  founded 273 

„      (Nov.)  Rothschild  not  allowed  to  sit  in  Parliament     .         .  237 

1849.  The  Gorham  Case,  involving  Doctrines  on  Baptism     .         .  246 

1850.  Papal  Bull  creates  Romanist  Episcopate  in  England   .         .  235 

1851.  Parliament  declares  Papal  Bull  void  (Act  repealed  1871)    .  235 

1852.  Convocation  resumes  its  functions,  and  makes  an  energetic 

protest  against  the  new  papal  hierarchy  ....  247 

1856.  The  Denison  Case  involving  Doctrines  on  Eucharist            .  244 

„      Irish  Church  Disestablishment  Bill  rejected  163  to  93         .  239 

1858.  Bill  abolishing  Church  Rates  rejected— also  in  1860    .         .  232 
„      Jewish  disabilities  removed  143  to  97         .         .         .         .  237 
„      Government  of  India  transferred  to  the  Crown  .        .        .  237 

1859.  English  Church  Union  founded 244 

1860.  Church  Defence  Institution  founded            ....  243 

1861.  Church  Rates  Abolition  Bill  rejected  by  Speaker's  vote       .  233 


CHRONOLOGICAL   TABLE.  295 

A.D.  PAGE 

1861.  First  Church  Congress,  henceforward  held  annually        .  248 

1864.  First  Diocesan  Conference.     Held  at  Ely         .         .         .  248 

Convocation  condemns  Etsays  and  Rerietvs      .         .         .  247 

The  Church  Association  founded 244 

1866.  Convocation  condemns  Dr.  Colenso's  writings          .         .  24S 

1867.  First  Pan- Anglican  Synod.     76  Bishops  present       .         .  _x- 
The  Mackonochie  Case,  involving  Ritual  observances       .  245 

1868.  Church  Rates  Abolition  Bill  passed 23.-, 

1869.  Irish  Church  Disestablishment  Act  passed        .        .         .  239 
Vatican  Council  promulgates  new  doctrines     .        .        .  236 

1870.  Elementary  Education  Act  passed 235 

The  first  Suffragan  Bishop  of  modern  times  consecrated  .  281 

1>71.  University  Tests  abolished 233 

..      Commons  refuse  to  Disestablish  English  Church,  374—89  .  243 

Martyrdom  of  Bishop  Pat teson  in  Melanesia     .         .        .  250 

1-72.  Commons  refuse  to  Disestablish  English  Church.  356—61  .  243 

l-?74.  Public  Worship  Regulation  Act  passed      ,  245 

1875.  The  case  of  Clifton,  r.  Ridsdale 246 

1-77.  Diocese  of  Truro  founded 27 1 

1878.  Diocese  of  St.  Albans  founded 275 

..     Second  Pan- Anglican  Synod  (100  Bishops  pres-nt)  .        .  2S-! 

1880.  Diocese  of  Liverpool  founded 27'5 

„     Burial  Laws  Amendment  Act  passed         ....  233 

1881.  Revised  Version  of  New  Testament  published  .        .        .  116 

1882.  Diocese  of  Newcastle  founded 277 

Diocese  of  Southwell  founded 279 

1885.  Revised  Version  of  Old  Testament  published    .        .        .116 
,.     Mr.  Bradlaugh  allowed  to  take  his  seat  in  Parliament      .  239 

Martyrdom  of  Bishop  Hannington  at  Busoga   .        .        .  251 

1886.  House  of  Laymen  met  for  the  first  time  .        .        .         .24$ 
1888.  Diocese  of  Wakefield  founded 280 

„     Oaths  Abolition  Bill  passed  the  Commons         .        .        .  240 
„     Third  Pan- Anglican  Synod  (145  Bishops  present)    . 


GENERAL     INDEX. 


An  asterisk  (*)  denotes  that    an  illustration    will  be  found  on  tin 
page  indicated. 


A 

Abbot,  Archbishop,  112,  119,  127 

Abhorrence,  Declaration  of,  190 

Absolution,  doctriiie  of,  exaggerated,  14 

Acts  of  Parliament.    See  Statutes 

African  Missions,  228,  250 

A'Laseo,  Jolin,  69 — 71 

Albemarle,  Duke  of,  and  the  Plague,  170 

Aliemitiou  of  Parochial  Tithes,  52, 
etseq;  239,241,  242 

Allen,  Cardinal,  94 

Alexander  VI.  Pope,  15—20 

Altars,  removed  by  Ridley,  71  ;  replaced 
by  Land,  120,  129 

American  Episcopate,  The,  202,  268—270 

Auabaptism,  growth  of,  165 

Anabaptist-,  burnt,  69 

Andrews,  Bishop,  120—122 

Annates,  see  First  Fruits 

Anne  of  Bohemia,  10 

Anne,  Queen,  196,  204,  et  seq 

Anti-papal,  Statutes,  8—10,  29—34,  82, 
96,98,  101,  174,  175,  181,235 

Apathy  of  Georgian  Era,  214  et  seq 

Appeals  to  Rome  forbidden,  98 

Aquinas,  St.  Thomas,  writings  of,  76 

Architecture,  Church,  Tudor,  103  ; 
Wren's  revived  Classic,  172 

Armada,  defeat  of  the,  99—102 

Armagh  Cathedral,  view  of  choir,  2L8* 

Armiuianism,  119  and  note 

Armourer,  An,  4* 

Articles,  The  Six,  41,  63,  73 

Articles,  The  Forty-two,  90 

Articles,  The  Ten,  40 

Articles,  The  Thirteen,  90 

Articles,  The  Thirty-nine,  90,  95,  98, 
166,  prefatory  declaration,  1:24— 5, 
Nonconformist  subscription  to,  231 

Asaphx  St.,  Cathedral,  desecration  of,  151 

Asaph,  St.,  See  of,  attempt  to  amalga- 
mate it  with  See  of  Bangor,  273 

Assembly,  General,  of  Scotland,  131—132 

Association,  The  Church,  244,  245 

Atheist  Disabilities,  removal  of,  239 — 241 

Attainder,  Bill  of,  against  Strafford, 
133  ;  against  Laud,  140 


Augmentation,  Court  of,  47 
Augustinian  Monasteries,  suppressed  by 
Wolsey,  25  ;  by  Henry  VI1L,  42  et  se'q 
Augsburg,  Confession  of,  90 
Austin  Friars  Church,  London,  69,' 95* 
Australian  Episcopate,  The,  271 
Auto-da-fe,  meaning  of,  76  note 
Azincourt,  battle  of,  3*,  7 

B 

Babington  Conspiracy,  98 
Baillie,  Robert,  and   Independents,  141 
Bancroft,  Archbishop,  112 
Bangor'an  Controversy,  213 
Baptism  of  Adults,  Service  for,  165 
Barlow,  Bishop,  69,  80,. 87— 89 
Bartholomew.  St.,  Massacre  of,  94—85 
Basle,  Council  of,  11 
Battlefield  Church,  Shrewsbury,  19* 
Baxter,  Richard,  163, 165,  180*,  186 
Beauchamp  Chantry,  13* 
Becker's  Tomb,  21,  48          5 
Bemerton  Church,  135  ;  view  of,  136* 
Benedictine  Monasteries  25,  42,  et  seq 
Benedictine  Nun,  Dress  of,  43" 
Berkeley,  Bishop,  215;  216 
Beverley  Minster,  view  of,  58* 
Bible,  The,  Wycliffe's  translation,  5,  7, 
12,37;  Tyndall's  translation,  S7-39; 
Convocation  pleads  for  re-transla'ion, 
37  ;  Coverdale's  translation,  38  ;  Mat- 
thew's    translation,    ib\    the    Great 
Bible  ib\  public  reading  of,  it*  ;  the 
Genevan,    91  ;    Parker's   ib ;    author- 
ized  version    of,   116 — 117  ;    Revised 
Version  of,  116;  translated  into  Irish, 
178;  other  languages,  199,  228 
Bible  Society,  British  and  Foreign,  228 
Bishops,  appointment  of  by  conge  d'eli re 
68,    74,83.     The    Edwardian,   68,    69; 
1 1, c  Marian,  72     7-1;  the  Klixabethrn, 
85 — 89 ;    opposition   to    by     Puritans, 
108— 110;  expelled  from   Parliament 
138,  139 ;  restored,  162;    in  America, 
268—270;  in  the  Colonies,  270—271  ; 
modern  increase  of  272—281 ;  gather- 
ings of  at  Lambeth,  2H2--285 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


297 


BUhops,  The  Seven,  1S5— 
Bishops,  The  nonjuring,  191,  132 
BohIer,Ps:er,  221 

Atiue.  Queen.  27.  2R,  S3,  71 
Bonner,  Bp..  62.  63. 

,  19 

Bourehier.  Car  iir: . 
Bourchier,  Joan,  burnt,  69 
Boyle. 

•lr.  Charles,  240 
Bray  Church,  193' 
Bray,  Dr.  Thomas.  199 ;   iu  il - 

i>;''_iaratton  of,  161 
Brfi'iiir\.  1't.e,  39;  see  Prayer-boo » 

.  272' 

Bristol,  so.?  or.  54,  ;• ' 
Browne,  Rev.  Robert,  95 
Bueer,  Martin,  70,  31 
Bulls,  Papal,  meaning  of,  9  no:- 
.  "9  ;    fnrbM  . 
Statute.   Si. 
Dot  withstanding  93,  235 
Bimy.v;  ;ut  of.  168 

. 

.'  SfO 

Dr.,  129.  133      ' 
liiitlei-.  -y:  217 

c 

.  251 

Caiviu.  Joiin.36 
Calvinism.  94.  95,  109,  12-! 
Calvinistic  M 

Cambr  >ity  of,    1S3,  King's 

College    Chapel,    15,*    103 ;    Queen's 
College.   16:  Trinity  College,  59— 60 ; 
St.  Mary's  Church,  71* 
Canon-  '-1  (1603),  111,  note 

Cape  Towr.,  Synod  of,  deposes  and   ex- 

cornmnn1  -ues  Dr.  C./ieuso,  218. 
Carlisle.  Diocese  of.  54 
Carthusian  Monasteries,  43  et  seq 

Tonk,  Dress  of,  49* 
Cartvvrijr'.it.  Dr.  Thomas.  96 
;m,  The Chnrcb,  111 

I're^byterian.  1  tl 

Catharine  of  Aragon,  Q:I.;-MI,  27—29,  33 
irals,  of  'old  fonudat  on,'   56;  of 
'new  for. 

Cavalier-.  154  et  se/j.,  163 
Caxton,  Wiiiiam.  17 

Chali;'  in  laity, 13  ;  restored 

"-.on.  66 

ith   cent. 

14  ;  suppression  of,  63 — 65 
Chapels,  Dissenting,  marriages  in,  232  ; 
exempt  from  taxation,  232 


Charles  I.  King,  122—146 
Charles  II.  King,  147—150, 161—177 
Charterhouse  School.  60,  61 
I 

". ;.  55 
'   >.  16 

i,  151 

Christ's  Hospital,  65* 

-   •;//.  Q.  Am. 

.. 

. 

:   —246 

Church  Defence  Institution,  243 
Church  Hon~- 

Church   of  England,   The,  aim  of,  40. 
The  i:  >n  occupied  i 

f  Ireland,  i: 
>f  Scotland,  see  So 
- 

...  i33 

:  .  257 — 259* 

;.ui  Monasteries,  43  etseg 
id  Chapel.  Wesley's.  2i5 

.       ;,    13o".;42— 3,  149 
:  VI. U  Pot 

celibacy  of.  :  taxa- 

f,  8  ;  '  Submission  of.'    31—32, 
34 ;    the   Long  Parliament  ai- 
135  ;  r    Puritans, 

156  — :  r  of  in  13th  cen- 

tury, 214—215  ;   modern  increase  of,  - 

educational  u  r,  261 

Clifton  ;•.  Ri.l*.Uvle,  Case  of,  246 

- .  it  sey 

.  Dr.  T.,  wr;- 
ohn,  Dean  of  St.  I 

•iression  of  59-64,  Theo- 
:.  261 
Colle^nate  Churches,  58 

"f  High,  S3,  97,  105 
.  189 

Commons,  House  of,  see  Parliament 
Comm  -161 

Communion  Office.  :.  66 

;i  Schemes.   I 

- 
-  land,   98,    110,   U   . 

211  ;  only  r: 
Conferences,  Dioee.- 
Congr  -ee  Independents 

-  '.nee.  Council  of.  In  — 12 
:ity  of  National  (' 

- 
Conversion,  doctrine  of,  221,  226 


298 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Convocation,  meaning  of,  6  note,  re- 
presset  Lollardy,7;  rebuked  by  Colet, 
23  ;  the  first  to  suggest  reforms  and 
repudiation  of  papal  supremacy,  29 — 
31  ;  nothing  done  without  its  sanc- 
tion, 42,104,  196  note;  constitution 
of,  72—73;  revises  liturgy,  A. u.  1542 
1552,  39,  66,67,  71;  A.I).  1662,  165; 
draws  up  Canons,  111,  132  ;  declines 
to  promote  Comprehension  Scheme  of 
William  III.,  212  ;  refuses  to  denom- 
inate the  Church  of  England  as  '  Pro- 
testant;' silenced  through  Archbishops 
Tilotson  and  Tenison  212—213 ; 
revival  of,  216— 7,  useful  recent  work 
247,  248,  and  note 

Oosin,  Bi  hop  of  Durham,  124,  125,  133 
Coverdale,  Bishop,  38,51,  68,  80,  87—89 
Covenant,    Solemn    League    and,    131 ; 

135  ;  imposed  upon  clergy,  138—147 
Cowper,  William,  the  poet,  219 
Cranmer,  Archbishop,  promotes  divorce 
of  Queen  Catharine,  29  ;  attempts  to 
Lutheranise   the    Church,    36 ;   wel- 
comes the   foreign  reformers,  36,  41, 
69  —71 ;  promotes  revision  of  liturgy, 
39,  66  et  seq. ;  fails  to  preserve  chantry 
revenues,  64  ;  advises  the  burning  of 
two    Anabaptists,    69,    70 ;    supports 
Lady  Jane  Grey,  73 ;  burnt,  79—80 
Cromwell,  Oliver,  141—160 
Cromwell,  Lord  Thomas,  32, 50 ;  portrait 

of,  51*  ;  beheaded,  52 
Cross,  Cheapside,  destruction  of,  148* 
Curates,  meaning  of  term,  260,  note; 

modern  increase  of,  260,  266,  note 
Curates'  Society,  The  Additional,  260 

D 

Day,  Bishop,  deprived,  68 
Deaconesses'  Homes,  267 
Declaration  of  Indulgence  issued  by 

Charles  II.,  174;  and  by  James  II., 

183—186  ;  Clergy  refuse  to  read,  185  ; 

Seven   bishops  petition  against,  ib. ; 

enforced  by  High  Commission,  189 
Defoe,  Daniel,  169,  170, 206  ;  his  Shortest 

Way  with  Dissenters,  209 
Deistic  Controversy,  216—218 
Denison,  Archdeacon,  244 
Dering,  Sir  Edward,  137,  138 
Dioceses,  subdivision  of,   54,  272 — 281 
Directory  for  Public  Worship,  140,  158 
Disestablishment  of  Irish  Church,  239    • 
Disestablishment  of    English   Church, 

motions  reject  °d  in  Parliament,  243 
Disestablishment  of  Church  in  Wales, 

proposals  for  the,  243,  244 
Dissenters,  see  Nonconformists 
Dissenters'  Indemnity  Act,  231 


Divine  Right  of  Kings,  105,  121, 123 
Divorce   Case  of   Henry  VIII.  27—29 
Doctrinal  Reforms  under  Henry  VIII., 

39—40;   under  Ed.  VI.,  63— 66,  69— 71 
Dollinger,  Dr.  von,  quoted  89  note 
Dort,  Synod  of,  119  note 
Drake,  Sir  Francis,  99,  100 
Drogheda,  0.  Cromwell's  cruelty  at  149 
Duubar,  battle  of,  149 
Dutch  Reformers, welcomed  by  Cranmer 

69;  extensive  immigration  of,  94,  95 

E 

East  India  Company,  103,200,  237 
East  India  House,  View  of,  201* 
Ecclesiastical  Commissioners,  241, 267 
Edinburgh,  old  St  Giles'  church,  130« 
Education,  Elementary,  S.F.C.K.  provi- 
sion for,     200 ;   neglect    of    by  the 
Government,   255  ;  work  of  National 
Society,  255— 257;   in  Essex,  256 
Edward  III.,  commercial  policy  of,  3 
Edward  VI.,  42,  61,  62»,  63—72 
Eikon  Basilike,  quoted,  144  note 
Eliot,  St.  John,  125-6 
Elizabeth,  Queen,  74,  75»,  81—103 
Elstow  Church,  view  of,  167* 
Ely,  See  of,  invaded  by  papacy,  9 
Endowments,  parochial,  5,   52 — 60,  64, 

241,  266,  267 

Engagement,  The  147,  160 
English  Church  Union  founded,  244 
English  language,  changes  in,  17,  116 
Episcopate,  The  Anglican,  increased  bv 
Henry  VIII,  54—56  ;  endangered  by 
Marian  bishops  and  Puritan  exiles,  8> 
— 87  ;    preserved  by  consecration  of 
Parker  and  others,  87,  89  ;  upheld  by 
Charles  1.,  144 ;  suppressed  by  Lonir 
Parliament,  138  et  seq.  ;  restored,  lfi'2 
et  seq.  ;  recent  extension  of,  268—287 
Epworth  Church,  Lincolnshire,  220* 
Erasmus,  22—24,  35 
Eraotianism.  64 
Essays  and  Reviews,  247 
Et  cetera  Oath,  The.  132,  133 
Euclurist  Controversy,   12—14.  41,  66, 

77,  84,  92,198,  244—246 
Eugeniui  IV.,  pope,  aggression  of,  9 
Evangelical  Party,  rise  of,  222 
Evangelical   Revival.  The,  225 — 227,  230 
Evelyn,  John,  quoted,  147,  153, 159,  160, 

170,  172  ;  portrait  of,  159» 
Exeter  Cathedral,  profaned  51 — 52 
Exeter,  Synod  of,  247 

F 

Fathers, Early  Greek  and  Latin,  writings 
of,  studied  at  Oxford,  21 ;  ousted  by 
mediaeval  writings,  78 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


299 


Ferrar,  Bishop,  69  ;  burnt  78 

Feudalism,  4, 19 

Finance — Recent  statistics  respecting 
Church,  266—7 

Fire  of  London,  the  Great,  170  ;  view  of, 
1"!  ;»  Monument  of,  172» 

First  Fruits  and  Annates,  seized  by 
Henry  VIII.,  30  ;  restored  by  Mary, 
74 ;  seized  by  Elizabeth,  83  ;  made  over 
to  Queen  Anne's  Bounty,  204 — 205 

Fisher,  Bishop,  29—33 

Fisher,  the  Jesuit  Father,  120 

Florence,  Council  of,  11 

Fox,  George,  the  Quaker,  149 

Foxe,  Bishop,  16 

France,  Wars  with,  2— 3 

Franklin,  Benjamin,  quoted,  222 

Frankfort,  Troubles  of,  81 

French  Revolution,  The,  217 

Friars,  in  rivalry  with  Monks,  20 ;  anti- 
national  character  of,  44  ;  excluded 
from  universities,  60 

Frobisher,  the  Explorer,  99,  103 


Gardiner,  Bishop  of  Winchester,  62,  63, 

68,  72—  76»,  77,  78 
Geddes,  Jenny,  commences  riot  against 

the  Scotch  liturgy,  131 
Q  enealogy  of  Plantaganets  and  Tudorg, 

104  ;  of  Stuarts  and  Hanoverians,  194 
George  I.,  213  ;  his  reign,  214,  it  seq. 
Georg*   III.,  gives  up    title    '  King  of 

France,'  3;  his  reign,  225,  et  stq. 
Georgia,  the  Wesleys  in,  220  ;    White- 

field  in,  222 

Gibbon's  Decline  and  Fall,  217 
Gibbons  Grinling,  the  Carver,  173 
Glastonbury,  Abbey,  43,  50,  69 
Glencoe,  Massacre  of,  203 
Gloucester,  See  of  founded,  54  —  56 
Goldsmith,  Oliver,  215,  280 

215  ;  his  Vicar  of  Wakefield,  280 
Gordon,  Lord  George,  riots,  234 
Gorham,  Rev.  G.  0.,  246 
Grace,  Pilgrimage  of,  47 
Gray,  poet,  his  Elegy,  215 
Greek,  first  studied  at  Oxford,  22 
Grey,  Lady  Jane,  proclaimed  Queen,  72 
Grindall,  Archbishop,  80,  96  et  sey~,  127 
Orocyn,  the  Greek  Professor,  22 
Guiana,  British,  See  of,  271 
Gunpowder  Treason  Plot,  112,  113* 


H 


Hamilton,  Patrick,  burnt,  107 
Hampden,  John,  126,  127,  126*,  134 
Hampton  Court,  26  .  view  of,  110» 
H&Mpton  Oour  Conference,  110,  111 


Hanoverian  Dynasty — Table  of,  194 
Heath,  Archbishop,  68,  73 
Heber,  Bishop  Reginald,  251»,  252,  270 
Henrietta  Maria,  122, 144,  173 
Henry  VII.,  19—21 

Henry  VIII.,  portrait  of,  41*  ;  befriends 
Oxford  Reformers,  23  ;  writes  against 
Luther,  35  ;  his  divorce  not  the  cause 
of    the     Reformation,  27 ;    marriage 
with  Anne  Boleyn,  28 ;   his  share  in 
the  Reformation,  29  et  seq. :  restores 
Royal    Supremacy,    31  ;    excommuni- 
cate'i    by    Paul    III.,    33 ;    promotes 
translation  of  the  Scriptures,  37 
Herbert,  George,  135  ;  quoted.  136—137 
Hereford  Cathedral  profaned,  150* 
Hoadley,  Bishop,  writings  of,  212,  213 
Holmby  (Holdenby)  House,  142 
Home  Reunion,  225,  285 
Homilies,  1st  book  of,  63 ;  2nd  book  of,  91 
Hook,  Dean,  253 
Hooker,  Richard,  98 ;   his  Ecelesiastical 

polity,  ib.  ;  influence  of,  120, 122 
Hooper,  Bishop,  68  ;    portrait  of,  78»  ; 
obstinacy  respecting  vestments,   69 ; 
imprisoned  by   Mary,  73;    deprived, 
74  ;  Martyrdom  of,  77—78 
Hospital  Sunday,  Contributions  to,  287 
Hospitallers,  Knights,  suppression  of,  50 
Hough,  Dr.,  President  of  Magdaltn,  183 
Hounslow,  camp  of  James  II.  at,  189 
Howard,  Admiral,  99, 100 
Hudson's  Bay  Company  incorporated,  200 
Huguenots,     Massacre     of,    194,    195 ; 
tolerated,  183  ;  again  persecuted,  184, 
190  ;  welcomed  in  England,  184 
Huntingdon,  Selina,  Countess  of,  222 
Hymns,    of    Cowper,   219 ;     of  Charles 
Wesley,  224 ;  of  Heber,  251,  252 


India,  The  Church  in,  237,  270 
Image  worship  repudiated  by  Lollards, 
21 ;  enforced  by  Council  of  Trent,  92 
Images,  destruction  of,  62,  82,  137,  148 
Independents,  rise  of,  95;  principles  of, 
119  ;  opposed  to  Presbyterians,  141 — 4 
Indulgences,  traffic    in,    14 — 15  ;   sanc- 
tioned by  Council  of  Trent,  92 
Infidelity  of  the  18th  century,  216—218 
Injunctions,  Royal,  of  Ed.  VI.,  63,  89 
Inquisition,  The  Spanish,  76,  101 
Institutes,  Calvin's,  publication  of,  36 
Institution  of  a  Christian  man,  34,  40 
Instrument  of  Government,  The  Crom- 

wellian,  154,  156 

Interdict,  Papal,  against  England,  33  93 
Ireland,  Church  of,  178,  238 
Itinerating  preachers,  Wycliffe's  i.  223 
Wesley's,  SM-I 


300 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Jacobites,  192—194,  196 

Jamaica,  Sec  of,  271 

James,  I.,  105,  106,  110—123 

James  II.,  174,  175,  179-  194,  203 

Jeffreys,  Judge,  179,  ISO*,  181 

Jerome  of  Prague,  11 

Jerusalem  Chamber,  Westminster,  115* 

Jesuits  in  England,  81,  94,  96,  112,  181 

Jewel,  Bishop,  80  ;  his  Apology,  91 

Jewish  Disabilities,  removal  of,  236,  287 

Julius  II.  Pope,  appoints    a    child  to 

Scottish  Primacy,  107 
Jurisdiction,    Episcopal,     30 ;    derived 

from  tin;  Crown,  3 land  note 
Juxon,  Archbishop,  144,  162 

K 

Keble,  Rev.  John,  252,  253* 
Kelso  Abbey,  View  of,  108* 
Kemp,  Cardinal,  20 
Ken,  Bishop,  177,  179,  185, 188*,  192 
King's  College  Chapel,  Cambridge,  15* 
King's  College,  London,  founded  261* 
Kirkby  Lonsdale,  Tithes  of,  60 
Knox,  John,  81, 107—109 


Laity,  sufferings  of,   under    Common- 
wealth, 158—160 
Lake,  Bishop,  184, 188* 
Lambeth  Articles,  98 
Lambeth  Conferences,  282—285 
Lambeth  Palace,  40,  153,  284* 
Latimer,  Bishop,  41,  63,  73,  79* 
Latitudiuarianism,  212  ei  seq 
Laud,  Archbishop,  112,  early  career  of, 
120 ;  portrait  of,  121*  ;  administration 
of,  127,  et  seq. ;  enforces  Liturgy  on 
Scotland,  130 — 131 ;   imprisonment  of, 
133  ;  trial  and  death  of,  138—140 
Law  Courts,  view  of  the  new,  246* 
Law,  Wm.,  214  ;  liis  Serious  Call,  215, 219 
Lectionary,  revised  by  Convocation,  166 
Legate,  Bartholomew,  burnt,  119 
Leicester  Abbey  Ruins,  26* 
Leighton,  Dr.  Alexander,  128,  133 
Leo  X.  Pope,  15,  20 

Levellers,  suppressed  by  Cromwell,  147 
Lichfield  Cathedral,  profaned  152 
Liddell,  Rev.  R.,  Prosecution  of,  244 
Litany,  First  English,  39  ;  revised,  84 
Liturgy,  66  note ;  see  Prayer-book 
Liverpool  Cathedral,  view  of,  276* 
Liverpool,  Diocese  of,  founded  275 — 277 
Lloyd,  Bishop,  184,  188* 
Lollard  Prison,  Lambeth,  view  of,  7* 
Lollards,  connexion  of  with  Wycliffe,  5  ; 


religiousopinionsof,6;  statutes  against 

6 — 8  ;  assailed  by  Convocation,  7 
Lords,  House  of,  Bishops  in,  46  note; 

expelled  from,   138  ;  restored  to,  162  ; 

Oliver  Cromwell's  pseudo,  155  ;    (see 

Parliament) 
Louis  XIV.,  175,  177 
Luther,  Martin,  35*;  his  books,  36 
Lutterworth,  Bridge  at,  view  of,  11* 

M 

Mackonochle,  Rev.  A.  II.,  245 
Madagascar,  See  of,  271 
Magdalen    College,    Oxford,   privileges 
assailed  by  James  II.,  183  ;  restored, 
189  ;  view  of  Tower.  190* 
Maiuwaring,  Bishop,  123, 124 
'  Malignants,"  137,  138,  157 
Manchester,  Cathedral,  view  of,  273* 
Manchester,  See  of,  273—4 
Manners,  Societies  for  Reforming  199 
Manning,  Cardinal,  253 
Mansfield,  Judge  and  the  Romanists,  234 
Marlborough,  Duke  of,  205,  206 
Marriage,  sanctity  of,  violated  by  Church 
of    Rome,  27  ;  the   Lambeth  Confer- 
ence on,  285  ;  in  Dissenting  Chapels,  232 
Martin,  Marprelate  Libels,  97 
Martin  V.,  Pope,  resistance  to,  9 
Martyn,  Henry,  Indian  Missionary,  227 
Martyr,  Peter,  70  ;  his  wife  81 
Mary,  the  Blessed  Virgin,  worship  of  21 
Mary  I.,  Queen,  72—81 
Mary  II.,  175, 176, 183,.191, 192 
Mary,  Queen  of  Scots,  93,  98,  99* 
Maryland,  230 ;  Dr.  Bray  in,  201 
Mass,  the,  14  ;  see  Eucharist  Controversy 
Massey,  Dean  of  Christchurch,  182 
Maynooth,  Romanist  College  at,  239 
Methodism,  account  of,  223 — 226 
Millenary  Petition,  The,  110 
Ministers  (monastic    churches)  ;    made 
cathedral,  54 — 56  ;     made  collegiate, 
56—58  ;  made  parochial,  68—59 

Church  His.  4 

Missal,  meaning  of,  14  ;  the  book,  39,  66 
Missionary  Work  abroad,  198—202,  228, 

229,  249,  et  seq.,  268,  271 
Mission  Chapel,  view  of  a,  265* 
Missions,  Home,  260,  264—266 
Monarchy,  absolute,  105,  127,  133  ;  des- 
troyed   by    Cromwell,    142     et   seq 
revived,  174  ;  limited,  175 
Monasteries,  English,  abuses  in,  V4,  44, 
et  seq  ;  character  of,  44,  45  ;  dissolu- 
tion of,   46,  et  seq  ',    distribution  of 
estates,  52  et  seq 

Monasteries,  Scotch,  suppressed,  108 
Monk,  General,  160—162 
Monks,  excluded  from  universities,  60 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


301 


Moravians,  220-221 
More,  Sir  Thomas,  22,  23,  26,  32*,  33 
Morton,  Cardinal,  20 
Mountagne,  Bishop,  122,  124 


.  Edict  of,  183, 184 
••attle  of,  142 

authority   of,   34 ;   self-reformed,   3o : 
:  great  usefulness  of, 

nl  Church,    TAf,   quote". 

National  Churches,  their  right  to  self- 
government,  35 

National  Schools,  255—257 

National  Society,  230,  255—257 

Naylor,  James,  fanaticism  of,  149 

Nelson,  Robert,  199 

Newcastle  Cathedral,  view  of,  278* 

Newcastle,  Diocese  of,  277—8 

Newfoundland,  202  ;  the  see  of,  270 

Newman,  Cardinal,  253 

Newstead  Abbey,  Ruins,  53* 

Newton,  Rev.  John,  219,  226 

New  Zealand  Missions,  228 ;  See  of,  271 

Nonconformists  (see  Puritans),  166  — 
168 ;  persecuted  by  James  II.,  180 ; 
their  sympathy  with  the  Seven 
Bishops,  186 ;  tolerated  under  Wm.III., 
198, 197  ;  hardships  of, under  Q.  Anne, 
:  removal  of  their  disabilities,  231, 
their  opposition  to  Romanism,  233 

Noujurors,  The,  191—193 

Non-resistance,  doctrine  of,  183  ;  modi- 
fied, 192  :  Oath  of,  167 

Norwich  Cathedral,  profaned,  151 

Nova  Scotia,  See  of,  270 


0 


Gates,  Titus,  175,  176,  179.130 

Oath  of  Allegiance,  192  el  seq. 

Oath  of  Supremacy,  33,  85,  et  al. 

Oaths,  Abolition  o: 

Occasional  Conformity  Bill,  203—209 

Oglethorpe,  Bishop,  crowns  Elizabeth,  82 

Oldcastle,  Sir  John,  burnt,  8 

Olney  Church,  Buck- 

Orange,  Prince  of  ;  see  William  III. 

Orange  Lodges,  formation  of,  238 

Ordinal,  The,  English,  68,  85,  83  and  nate 

Ornaments  Rubrics,  The,  84 

Oxford  Cathedral,  55,  182* 

Oxford  Reformers,  The,  21—24 

Oxford,  See  of,  founded,  54,  55 


Paine,  Thomas,  writings  of,  218 


Paley's  Evidences  of  Christianity,  218 

Papal  Hierarchy,  the  modern,  23 1 — 236 

Papal  Supremacy,  repudiation  of,  8—10, 
25  ;  restoration  in  part  by  Mary,  76, 
81 ;  again  repudiated,  82,  92,  93,  99 

Palmer,  Rev.  \Villiam,  253 

Parker,  Arc!.  r  of  Princess 

nation 

settlement,  82— s3  :  portrait  < 
election  to  primacy,  87  ;  his  c  o 
tion,    57 — S3  note,  and  frontispiece*  : 
-  translation  of   the  Bible-,  91  ; 
tomb  of,  rifled  by  Puritans,  153 

Parker,  Bishop  of  Oxford,  1S3, 184 

Parliament,  Commons  represented  in,  4  ; 
petitioned  by  Lollards,  6  ;  attempts  to 
confiscate  Chtirch  property,  7  ;  passes 
anti-papalstatutes,  8 ;  upholds  national 
independence,  9  ;  supports  Convoca- 
tion in  repudiating  papal  supremacy, 
29  et  seq. ;  restrains  Queen  Mary.  74  ; 
conflict  with  Charles  I.,  123  et  seq. ; 
proceedings  of  the  Long,  132  et  seq. ', 
proceedings  of  the  Rump,  146  et  seq.  : 
dissolved  by  Cromwell,  153, 155*  ;  the 
Barebones,  154 ;  Cromwell's,  154 — 
156  ;  dissolution  of  the  Long,  161 ;  the 
Cavalier,  163  etseq. ',  does  not  legislate 
on  spiritual  questions  independently 
of  Convocation,  42,  104,  196  note,  241. 
(Set  - 

Parliamentary  Grants  to  the  Church 
and  Dissent,  229,  230 

Parochial  System,  advantages  of,  263 — 6 

Passive  Obedience,  doctrine  of,  105 ; 
accentuated,  123  ;  modified,  189,  192 

Patteson.  Bishop,  his  missionary  station, 
249* ;  his  work  and  martyrdom,  250 

Paul  IV,  Pope,  insults  Elizabeth,  82 

Pecock,  Bishop,  quoted,  12,  13,  21 

Pennsylvania  founded.  149,  132,  201 

Percival,  Rev.  W.  F.,  253 

Perth,  Riots  at.  107  ;  five  articles  of, 
115  ;  the  old  church  of,  203* 

Peterborough  Cathedral,  view  of,  28* 

Peterborough,  see  of,  founded,  54 — 56 

Petre,  Father,  the 

Pews  in  Churches.  210,  211* 

Philip  of  Spain,  74—77,  81,  99 

Philpotts,  Bishop,  defends  his  vote  on 
the  Reform  Bill,  243  ;  resists  appoint- 
ment of  Mr.  Gorham,  246—7 

Pisa,  Council  of,  10 

Pius  IV.,  Pope,  his  famous  creed  of 
Trent,  92  ;  offers  to  sanction  Reforma- 
tion if  he  may  be  supreme,  93 

Pius  V.,  excommunicates  Elizabeth,  93 

Plague  in  London,  the  Great,  160*,  170 

Pocock,  Rev.  E..  and  Puritans,  157 

Pole,  Cardinal,  76.- 

Pollanus,  of  Strasburg,  69 


302 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Pontefract  Church,  destruction  of,  152* 

Pontifical,  The,  39,  68  .. 

Popes,  Rival,  10 

Porteus,  Bishop,  of  London,  226,  254 

Potter,  Archbishop,  on  infidelity,  217 

Prcemunire,  statute  of,  enforced,  8, 10 ; 
opposed  by  popes,  9  ;  Wolsey  prosecu- 
ted under,  27  ;  cle-gy  threatened  with, 
30—31  ;  Mary  I.  threatens  to  use,  81 

Prague,  University  of,  10,  22 

Prayer  Book,  Sources  of  the,  39  ;  revision 
of  by  Convocation,  40  ;  First  Book  of 
Edward  VI.,  66  ;  objections  to,  67 ; 
Second  Book  of  Edward  VI.,  71  ;  sup- 
pressed by  Mary,  74 ;  restored  by 
Elizabeth,  83—85  ;  revised  at  Hampton 
Court  Conference,  110;  public  use  for- 
bidden, 140 ;  private  use  forbidden 
157, 159  ;  restored,  162,  163  ;  again  re- 
vised, 165  ;  occasional  services,  114, 146 

Presbyterians,  Rise  o